Must Be True Love
by PirateWizardThief
Summary: "You're an asshole, but I love you. You're the only love I've ever known. But I hate you, I really hate you. So much I think it must be true love." Riley was brought up to hunt since the age of five , but she never expected to be back in the game of hunting when a certain green eyed man shows up, stirring up old emotions for her. Is she still in love with him? Rating will go up.
1. The Woman in White

**I know, I know...What? Another story? Seriously, I can't help it! So here is yet another story...Please enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 1: The Woman in White

**Miles outside of Palo, California… **

A black Chevy '67 Impala roared down the road headed towards an unknown destination. A young woman around the age of twenty-one sat in the passenger seat, her straight blonde hair flowing down past her shoulders. Her baby blue eyes were fixed on the road ahead, her eye brows furrowed in annoyance. Next to her, his dark brown eyes glancing at her with an angry/apologetic look, was a young man of twenty-six. The girl's name was Riley Fords and her driver's name was Dean Winchester.

"Riley?" The girl frowned and glared irritably out the window car, visibly ignoring her driver. Frustrated, Dean tried again. "Blondie?" Dean was the only one who called her that and the only one she allowed to do so. Finally he dropped the act. "Look, what more do you want me to say?" The blonde turned with a flourish, her hair whipping around as she did. She narrowed her eyes at Dean.

"An explanation would be nice." She snapped at him who frowned in return. "I wasn't doing anything wrong." She shook her head in aggravation.

"Didn't do anything? What do you call what you were doing?" Dean growled and Riley bit her lip. Finally she frowned, not wanting to give in first.

"I don't need protecting, Dean. I knew what I was doing." She said and Dean growled.

"How many times were you told not to take a case alone?" Dean snarled. "You could have been-"

"What? Killed? Hurt?" She mocked.

"Yeah, exactly."

"I can take care of myself."

"Uh-huh, keep telling yourself that." Riley shut her eyes and exhaled loudly.

"Look, if you're that determined," Dean murmured, his voice taking a different tone which made Riley open her eyes and glance at him. "Then at least…come with me."

"What?"

"Come with me." Dean repeated like she was slow and Riley frowned.

"Are you asking or telling?" She asked and Dean scowled.

"I swear, you-"

"Okay! Yeah, I'll come with you…I guess…but you have to tell me what the hell you were doing around Arkansas to begin with." Green eyes glared at her and, not that she would admit it, it sort of intimidated her quite a bit. Dean could be quite forceful.

"I don't have to explain anything to you!" Dean snapped and slammed his hand against the steering wheel. Riley jumped at the sound and Dean didn't notice as she frowned at him a hand on her chest. "Damn it, Riley, can we just discuss this later?"

"No! We are going to talk about this now." She hissed at him and Dean suddenly slammed on his brakes. Riley lurched forward as the car slowed quickly. Skidding to the side of the road he parked his car and turned to face her as she blew her hair out of her face.

"Fine. First off you and I both know that you are a reckless girl. You always have been." Riley scowled and Dean tried not to smirk as her nose wrinkled up in anger. "But what I just saw…" He trailed off with a frown and rubbed a hand across his face. Riley sighed and ran her fingers through her hair pushing it back off her face. They both knew that she shouldn't have taken on a case alone. "That was…What were you thinking going off alone?" Riley gritted her teeth determined to defend herself, but she knew that it would be a weak excuse.

"I…You just ruined my chance at getting that damn thing!" She shrieked finally, deciding to go a different route and Dean slammed the car door open. He had found her almost dead in a parking lot and damn it all if he was going to let her continue to be reckless and risk her life by hunting alone.

"Getting that thing? Whatever. I know Bobby wouldn't have let you off alone. I thought you knew better." He got out finally, cooling off as he walked a few feet from the car. If only Bobby could see what his 'little princess' was up too now. _He'd be pissed._

Riley followed his lead, getting out of the car and shook her head at his back. Dean was a little shorter than most men his age and his dark brown hair. His black leather jacket cast a glow in the dim street light as he walked. His temper was just as short as he was if not more shorter. The blonde behind him, was shorter than he was but very curvy. Riley shivered a bit as stalked, or tried to, in her heels. He walked a little ways more from the car and turned at the sound of the car seat being pushed forward. Riley grabbed her bag from the back of the car.

"I don't have to explain myself to you either." She muttered under her breath. What was the point? She didn't want him thinking she couldn't handle things.

"Now what are you doing?" Dean asked in an irritated sigh, trying not to show how concerned he was.

"Leaving." She said simply and popped the chair back up before slamming the door shut again.

"Don't do that, Blondie." Dean said a little calmer, but Riley wasn't giving in at all as she hitched the bag over one shoulder and stalked towards the other side of the road. "C'mon you know how I am." Dean tried again, walking faster than the girl in heels and Riley turned and poked him in the chest, making his stop abruptly.

"Yes, I know how you are you-you argh!" She shouted and pounded his chest. Dean smirked a bit at her. Did she really think that hurt? "Just explain to me what the hell we're doing out in the middle of nowhere! And how the hell did you find me?!" Dean sighed and ran a hand through his short hair.

"Dad's missing." He stated stiffly and she paused, blinking at the sudden news. She bit her lip as a strange look appeared on her face.

"What?" She whispered and Dean nodded.

"He never came back."

"John's…gone? But I thought that…" She trailed off and was silent. John Winchester had practically raised her along with Bobby Singer, her guardian, and had taught her the ways of being a supernatural hunter.

Dean frowned in concern and came up to her when her head turned away from him. With her head turned she hid her tears but Dean knew that she was upset, by the shaking of her thin shoulders. Almost out of character, he tilted her chin up to look at him. For a moment he didn't speak, just stared at her tear-filled blue eyes, almost getting lost in the deep blue gaze. But when a small frown line appeared in impatience, he recovered, removing his hand. Riley almost wished he hadn't let go. All the old emotions of a teenage crush raced back through her system in that one touch.

"We're going to get, Sammy. Then we'll find him. All right?" Dean took her bag, stepping away from her, feeling awkward again. "Look, just come with me. I-"

"You don't want to do this alone." She pressed and he frowned at the ground, refusing to show his soft side.

"Yeah." Dean murmured and she sighed.

"Okay." He put the bag back in as she gave a yawn. He shoved it back into the car and she got back in.

"So, you're good now right?" He asked as they pulled out back onto the highway. Riley rolled her eyes, wiping at the tears.

"Yeah." She replied dryly. Of course of the two brothers she had to be stuck with the tough one, the one who had no clue how to treat delicate situations of any kind. "I just wished you had told me before, I would have come immediately. Usually when he leaves for a little while, he comes back like always. What changed?"

"I don't know, Blondie. I don't know." Dean turned on the cassette player then to fill the silence of the car. Riley sighed quietly; feeling tired and leaned her head back against the seat. She never shut her eyes though and instead watched the bright highway lights flash by the window as her mind started to drift off.

"_There's a girl in here, John." A voice said and she cowered under the desk further. "She's got a kid."_

"_Mommy…" She whispered and hugged her knees. A shadow appeared at the desk and she bit her lip a small whimper escaping. The figure came to stand in front of where she was hiding and a man peered at her as he got on one knee._

"_I found her." He called over one shoulder and then looked back at her. She screamed when he moved closer. The man paused. _

"_I'm not gonna hurt you darlin'." He said soothingly. "My name's Bobby. What's yours?" She refused to say and whimpered when he shifted again. _

"_She under the desk?" Another male voice drifted from the front of the room and Bobby nodded. _

"_Yeah, she won't come out." _

"_We need to get her out of the house."_

"_Let Dean and Sammy try to talk to her."Bobby stated. "Maybe another kid can coax her out." Bobby shuffled back and she heard low voices talking. Two young boys appeared in front of her._

"_Hi," Said the younger one first his eyes glimmering. He looked a year or so older than her. "Don't you want to come out?" She shook her head. _

"_Not like that Sammy." The older one murmured and he looked at her. "It's gone you know. You're safe now." She blinked at him. "It's okay. Come on out."_

"_Mama." She murmured and he smiled grimly. _

"_What'd she say?" Bobby asked. _

"_Mama." The younger boy said and then looked at her again. "My name is Sam, but you can call me Sammy." _

"_And I'm Dean. What's your name?" The older boy stated. _

"…" _She whispered and Dean frowned, moving closer. _

"_What?"_

"_Riley."_

"_Oh, I like that. Mind if I call you Riles?"She shook her head and let Dean take her hand. "Come on, we won't hurt you." She smiled for the first time that night._

She shook her head from the memory. Dean had been so nice then… She rolled her eyes. _What the hell happened?_ She knew from experience that Dean wasn't going to drop the thing about her being alone and she only hoped he wouldn't speak of it around Sam. If anyone was more protective of Riley it was Sam. He was more like the older brother and Dean was like the guy who wouldn't shut up, at least in Riley's opinion. Dean was the kind that thought he was right all the time and was often hot-headed. His temper always blew and as usual Riley was the reason.

Dean tossed a glance at Riley, trying and failing to stop his wondering gaze over her curvy figure. It wasn't like he hadn't noticed her before, but it had been a while since he had seen her. Dean's fingers tightened on the steering wheel as she shifted in her seat, moving a bit closer to him. He realized that she was drifting off to sleep, though her scrunched up nose told him she was trying to stay awake.

"Go to sleep, Blondie." Dean stated and she looked at him incredulously. "I mean it. Get some shut eye. It's a long ride to get to Sammy."

"I can't sleep now." She murmured, though she did lean against the seat.

"Try." Dean stated and turned up the music. Riley only blew air nosily out of her mouth, making Dean snort quietly. _Still as stubborn as ever…_ The last time he had seen her, she had been sixteen. Bobby had just sent her over to bring his father some news about the newest monster heist and she had come to his front door. Dean remembered opening it and staring at her for several minutes, before she cleared her throat in amusement.

"_Don't tell me you forgot who I am." She had teased and Dean had coughed._

"_No, of course not Riles."_

Riles. That was another nickname, but one that was used more often. Blondie was reserved for Dean only.

For seventeen years, she has lived with Bobby, ever since her parents had died from unnatural causes. Something all the Winchesters and Bobby himself were used too. Dean's mother had died when he was four, leaving him, his younger brother Sam, and his father, alone. Bobby had taken her in, for a reason that he never would say, but Riley was glad that he had. She couldn't imagine a better parent. She had practically grown up around the Winchester boys and though she wasn't their sister, but she was the like a part of the family. Dean had always been very protective of her. No matter what the circumstances had been.

Riley glanced at him as he gazed back out the window. She had seen him ogling her and though it did make her uneasy, she also felt… _Stop that!_ Her mind screamed at her a long lost fantasy wound its way into her brain. _I will not have any more daydreams about Dean! _She chanted over and over, calming her racing heart. She put hand to her forehead and groaned quietly. She knew that he was attractive, but she also knew that she wasn't his type of girl. Riley wanted a real relationship not one that lasted for a night, like most of Dean's. She had had that perfect relationship once. _But it's gone now_, her inner voice reminded her. _He's dead. _ Her eyes found their way back to Dean and she sighed.

Dean finally stopped ogling her, but when he stopped he also noticed her clothing more appropriately the bottom half since she had coat over her shirt. Her shorts were very short, though it wasn't the first time that Dean had seen short shorts; he still looked at them for several seconds longer than necessary. _Nice legs._ He found himself saying in his mind and sudden shook his head. _No, focus on the job. Must find Sam. Must find Dad. Must…find…see…Riley's legs…Damn it! _

"Where-where do you think he's gone, Dean?" She asked suddenly, pulling him out of his thoughts and Dean was thankful of that. He sighed and turned down the cassette player a smidgen.

"Haven't a clue, but as soon as we get Sam, we'll find him." He said determinedly.

"Dean, are you sure we should get Sam? After all he went to college for a reason." Riley reasoned, trying to make Dean see sense. She wasn't opposed to finding Sam, but…She had heard that Sam and John had a falling out and Riley wasn't so sure that he'd leap into the action of being a hunter so quickly, even for John.

"Screw college. Dad is more important. He's the one that left anyway." Dean retorted firmly and Riley rolled her eyes and sighed. It was a lost cause to argue, she knew. Dean was as excited about college as much as a supermodel was excited about weight gain. To Dean, college was like pulling teeth. Riley? She just never desired to go and she wasn't eager to be alone yet. She also didn't have the money to go and never asked Bobby for anything, though that hadn't stopped him from spoiling her over the years.

"I hope we find John soon." She bit her lip then and nothing more was said for a few miles. Dean occasionally looking at her out of the corner of his eye, and Riley's heavy eyelids lost their battle and she soon fell asleep.

* * *

"Turn it down, please." Riley asked irritably, eyeing the volume button. She had been rudely awakened by Metallica's "Devil's Dance", and she was not in a good mood. When she did not receive a response, she leaned forward and turned the music down herself, and then huffed back in her seat irritably. Dean glared at her from the corner of his eye and she stuck her tongue out childishly.

"One, I told you not to touch my radio and two, get your feet on my dashboard." Dean growled out and pushed her bare feet down off the top of the dashboard. Riley's feet landed with a thud on the floor of the car and she cast him a dirty look. He loved the car more than anything. It came a close second to himself.

"Well, _one_," She shot back at him venomously, courtesy of her loss of sleep. "I told you that you had it too loud and _two_ I asked you to turn it down." She said and then added: "_You're _the one who didn't listen to me." Dean snorted and ignored her as usual. Riley rolled her eyes and folded her arms across her chest irritably.

"We're here." Dean announced slowly and both looked up at the buildings as they past. Riley gave a small smile at the many tall and lovely buildings. _Sam sure could pick them. This place was fancy!_

"Which one is he in?" She asked curiously and Dean tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. He did that when he was deep in thought.

"That one if I remember what I read correctly." He murmured and they turned down another street to a row of campus houses. Dean parked in the lot next to the building and then threw Riley a look that she knew instantly. "Stay in the car." He said and she nearly snorted at her guess of what he'd said. Riley growled.

"But Dean-" She started to protest and he as usual cut her off mid-rant.

"I said stay in the car." He said firmly and got out without another word leaving her alone. Riley scowled as she watched him slip up to the side of the university guesthouse. He was, instead of being a normal person and knocking on the door, going through the window. Riley groaned.

"Ugh. Men." She muttered after a while then frowned at herself. "Wait. What the hell am I doing? Screw this I'm not staying in the car." She opened the car door and got out. "He can't tell me what to do." Riley looked from Dean's entrance to the door and sighed. _Well, if he's already got the window unlocked…._

* * *

After a night of celebrating, Sam was sleeping peacefully next to his girlfriend Jessica, when a sound awoke him. Getting up cautiously, Sam made sure that his girl was still asleep before trying to locate the noise. As he approached the small living room he saw that the window in the kitchen was open. Someone had slipped inside. He watched apprehensively, his lifelong training instinct kicking in. He saw the perpetrator walk by quickly into the living room and he made his move towards the living room right behind the guy. Then he attacked. Sam hit the guy knocking him into a wall and the guy fought back with equal strength. They punched and kicked expertly each trying to outwit the other. Suddenly, Sam found himself on the ground his attacker pinning him down.

"Whoa, easy, tiger." The figure teased and Sam's eyes widened.

"Dean?" Sam asked in surprise finally recognizing his brother. Sam and Dean were both dark haired and dark eyed, getting most of their looks from their father. Dean chuckled at Sam's expression.

"You scared the crap out of me." Sam continued, still trying to calm himself.

"Its cause your outta practice." Dean said rather smugly. Sam then flipped Dean over rather quickly surprising the older brother. "Or not." He said with an out of breath laugh. Then he grew serious and patted Sam's arm. "Get off me."

"Dean, what the hell are you doing here?" Sam demanded as Dean to his feet.

"Well, I was looking for a beer." Dean grinned at Sam, who looked at him in disbelief. Sam wasn't in the mood to play.

"What the hell are you doing here?" He asked again rather irritated. Dean sighed.

"Okay, all right. We gotta talk."

"Is it Riley? Have you spoken to her?" Sam asked suddenly worried and before Dean could open his mouth to respond, Sam started again. "Is she okay?"

"I'm fine, Sam." A feminine voice from behind them and they turned to look. A twenty-one year old blonde girl stood in the kitchen in a black and red shirt, her red leather jacket in one hand and her black heels in the other. She was a little out of breath and caught the look on Dean's face. "What?" The blonde asked folding her arms across her chest defiantly. "You left me in the car. Did you honestly expect me to stay there?" Dean only rolled his eyes at that and Sam smiled a little.

"Sam!" Riley cried and ran throwing her arms around Sam's neck and hugged him fiercely. He stumbled back a little at the sudden attack, but he grinned and hugged her back. Dean frowned and half turned from the sight. How come she hugged _him_? He wasn't the one who rescued her!

"Riley, what are you doing here?" Sam asked her, setting her back on the ground.

"Well, I was about to explain before _someone _interrupted." Dean said eyeing Riley with a frown. "She was supposed to stay in the car." Riley cast him a smirk.

"As if you could make me." She retorted and then she detached from Sam's neck. Sam merely gave the two an eye roll. "I missed you, why haven't you called?" Riley asked him. A guilty expression crossed Sam's face. He was not in good terms with his father, and Dean somewhat, but that was no reason to ignore Riley too. She had still been in high school when he left for college and he hadn't spoken to her in a long time.

"I'm sorry." He said sincerely, unable to really tell her why he hadn't. She took the hint and nodded before looking at Dean.

"Well, go ahead hot shot." She said with a mischievous grin. "Tell him." Dean frowned at her with irritation, before turning to address Sam.

"Like I said we need to talk." He stated and Sam scoffed.

"Uh, the phone?" He asked as if Dean was slow.

"If I had called would you have picked up?" Dean challenged, already knowing the answer. "Besides, haven't we already established the fact that you wouldn't call us either?" Again Sam glanced at Riley guiltily, but she was only eyeing Dean disapprovingly. Suddenly the light in the living room clicked on and the three turned to see a girl standing there wearing only a tee shirt and pink striped boxer short panties enter the living room.

"Sam?" The girl asked, looking at the strangers in apprehension. Who were these people talking to her boyfriend in the middle of the night?

"Jess." Sam said, wondering how he was going to explain the two in his living room, and Riley looked at Dean. If he could've gotten away with it he would've drooled in the floor. Riley wrinkled her nose at Dean's reaction before noticing how nervous Sam was. She could tell that he hadn't been expecting to run into his past tonight and she could only imagine the shock for his girlfriend.

"Hey, uh…Dean, Riley this is my girlfriend, Jessica." Sam said rather awkwardly. Jessica stared at them in slight shock, before realization coming to her eyes.

"Wait. Your brother Dean?" She asked coming forward then she spotted Riley. "And you must Riley, Sam talks of you often." Behind Sam's back, Riley stuck her tongue out at Dean and mouthed 'See he likes the nice people more'. Dean only rolled his eyes at that before turning back to Jessica.

"I love the Smurfs." Dean said pointing at her shirt and Riley hit him on the arm, knowing full well what he was 'loving'. "You know I gotta tell you, you are completely out of my brother's league."

"Oh?" Riley intervened, giving Dean an angry look. "And just what league are you in? The stalkers?" Dean ignored her.

"Just let me put something on." Jessica said and Dean looked disappointed.

"No, no, no. I wouldn't dream of it." Riley looked at Sam and saw the look of anger on his face. "Seriously."

"Knock it off, Dean." Riley said with a roll of her baby blue eyes. He could be such a pain sometimes.

"Anyway, I gotta borrow your boyfriend here, talk about some private family business. But, uh, nice meeting you." Dean stated swiftly. Jessica looked at Sam and Sam frowned.

"No." He said turning to face Dean. "No. Whatever you wanna say, you can say it in front of her." He now stood beside Jessica and Riley smiled at their closeness. _Sam was really happy here_, she thought, _maybe college isn't such a bad thing._ But looking at Dean reminded her of why she hadn't gone when she could've. Dean needed her and she didn't want to leave him too. She knew he had felt slightly betrayed after Sam had left, she didn't want to be the one to hurt him further.

"Okay." Dean said with a shrug of indifference, though he did look irritated, and strode forward a little. "Um, Dad hasn't been home in a few days." Sam looked at Dean incredulously.

"So, he's working overtime on a "Miller Time" shift." Sam said not seeing what this had to do with him. Riley bit her lip as he continued. "He'll stumble back in sooner or later." Dean nodded, knowing what Sam's reaction would be and he would have to elaborate.

"Dad's on a hunting trip." He tried again, emphasizing the 'hunting' part. Jessica looked at the brothers and then at the blond who was looking a little upset at whatever the news meant. She had no clue what they were talking about, but it seemed to upset everyone but Sam.

"And Dean says he hasn't been home at all, Sam." Riley suddenly said and Sam saw the concern in her eyes as did Jessica who looked at Sam with trusting eyes.

"Jess, excuse us. We have to go outside." He murmured to her and she nodded understandingly. Sam smiled at her and she gave him a look that meant he was going to have to explain later. Riley slipped her jacket back on as they headed for front door.

"It was nice to meet you." She said to Jessica and she smiled.

"You too, hope everything is okay." She murmured and Riley nodded not sure how to respond before following Dean out the door.

* * *

Dean led the way down the stairs with Riley and Sam right behind him. Sam spoke rapidly as they followed.

"I mean, come on." He was saying. "You can't just break in, in the middle of the night, and expect me to hit the road with you." Riley looked at Dean pointedly and he scowled at the both of them.

"I told you." She warned him, and he rolled his eyes yet again. "And he might have been nicer if you had used the front door like a normal person, rather than a burglar." She finished scolding and Sam snickered, earning a glare from Dean.

"You're not hearing me, Sammy." He snapped. "Dad's missing. I need you to help us find him." Sam frowned.

"You remember the poltergeist in Amherst? Or the Devil's Gate in Clifton? He was missing then too." Sam paused at the foot of the stairs and Riley bumped into his back as Dean whirled to face him. "He's _always_ missing and he's _always_ fine."

"Not for this long." Dean said firmly and he actually looked concerned. "Now are you going to come with me or not?" He seemed to be asking the two on the stairs and Riley peered at him over Sam's shoulder.

"I'm not." Sam said and Riley couldn't help but feel sad that he didn't want to go. But she had seen that he was happy here and couldn't deny that she had already been thinking that he wouldn't go. Herself? _Might as well go._

"Why not?" Dean asked and she saw the angry look in his eyes. _Please, Dean, don't get in a foul mood_, she pleaded in her mind, _you get really crazy then_.

"I swore I was done hunting. For good." Sam responded.

"Come on. It wasn't easy but it wasn't that bad." Dean frowned at Sam, his temper boiling. "Right, Riley?" _Crap. Why did he bring me into this?_ Riley moved further behind Sam out of Dean's piercing gaze.

"Well, actually-"

"Don't bring her into this." Sam interrupted saving her from explaining to Dean and she sighed with relief, using his back for support. "And yeah it was that bad." Dean started walking again and Riley had to straighten up to avoid smacking the floor as Sam followed.

"When I told Dad I was scared of the thing in my closet, he gave me a .45." Sam continued and Dean looked at him over his shoulder.

"What was he supposed to do?" Dean asked seriously and Riley scoffed.

"Seriously?"

"I was nine years old." Sam said just as incredulously. "He was supposed to say "Don't be afraid of the dark"."

"Yeah, you know, like in the movies." Riley murmured and Dean rolled his eyes at the two of them.

"'Don't be afraid of the dark?' What are you kidding me? Of course you're supposed to be afraid of the dark. You know what's out there." Dean retorted and then snorted: "Movies." He scoffed and Riley sighed.

"Yeah, I know." Sam stated seriously. "But still, the way we grew up, after Mom was killed and Dad's obsession with to find the thing that killed her. But we still haven't found the damn thing. So we kill everything we can find." Riley bit her lip anxiously and Dean saw.

"What about, Riley? Her _mother_ was killed, Sam. Don't you think we haven't been looking for their killer either?" Riley flinched and Sam saw the fear in her eyes.

"Dean…" She murmured softly and Sam put a hand on her shoulder. She really didn't want to talk about that. Secretly it still gave her nightmares, although she was too young to remember everything she did have flashes of things that happened that night, but never told Dean or Sam that. She bared it alone.

"But we saved a lot of people doing it too." Dean continued not hearing her soft reply.

Sam let out a brief humorless laugh at Dean's insensitivity and gave Riley's shoulder a squeeze. "Do you think Mom would have wanted this for us?" They had reached the bottom of the stairs now and Dean shoved the creaky metal gate open as they went outside towards his pride and joy. Sam continued to speak as they approached the car.

"The weapon training and the melting silver into bullets? Man, Dean we were raised like warriors."

Dean looked at Riley. "She was too. And she isn't complaining."

"That's because, she hasn't known anything else!" Sam snapped. "She's been under Dad's influence ever since she and I were both old enough to hold a revolver." Riley blinked at Sam. He was right of course, but she really didn't like that he made it seem like she had no choice. It wasn't as if Bobby hadn't tried to keep her in the dark about his secret hunter life and John had too. They both had tried, but Riley hadn't been so easy to fool and she had soon been trained with the two Winchester Brothers. But…somewhere in her mind, Riley, wished that she _had_ been kept in the dark about it. She really wished that she had had a mother to care for her. Everything she knew now was from other girls her age and nothing from other women. Of course, she also knew about things before hand. That had made dinner conversations often awkward for the two Winchester brothers when she stayed with them which had been often.

"So what are you going to do?" Dean asked as they got to the back of the car. "You're just going to live some normal, apple-pie life? Is that it?"

"No. Not normal. Safe." Sam murmured.

"And that's why you ran away." Dean scoffed, frowning.

"Oh, lord." Riley muttered. "Here it comes." Sam scoffed back, looking dumbfounded that Dean was acting this way.

"I was just going to college. It was Dad that said if I was going to go, I should stay gone. Is that why you aren't in college?" He suddenly shot at Riley and she jumped at being addressed so quickly.

"Well, somewhat." She admitted with slight embarrassment and a pink tinge rose to her cheeks. "But it was my choice not to go."

"Why? You're a smart girl. You could've found a better, _safer_ place to be." Sam emphasized 'safer' aiming at Dean who scowled at him.

"I-I just wasn't into it." She murmured and Sam sighed. Of course, Riley was always loyal to Dean no matter how many times he made her mad which was often.

"Well, that's what I did. Staying gone." Sam stated and Dean looked back at him.

"Yeah, well, Dad's in real trouble right now, if he's not dead already. I can feel it." After a minute Dean continued. "I can't do this alone."

"Yes, you can." Sam argued back and Riley cleared her throat to get Dean's attention and he sighed.

"Yeah. Well, I don't want to." He finally admitted reluctantly. Sam sighed too and Riley knew that he was coming with them.

"What was he hunting?" Dean gave him a look before opening the trunk.

"All right. Let's see. Where the hell did I put that thing?" Dean muttered to himself as he dug through the piles of weapons that were in the back of the trunk. Weapons were something that was needed for the job and Riley could use just about every one of those weapons, though had always hoped to not have too.

"So when Dad left, why didn't you go with him?" Sam asked Dean. "And I thought that you were still at Bobby's?"

"I left and Dean found me." The girl stated and the way she said it made Sam look at her in concern but she only shook her head. It wasn't worth starting another argument.

"I was working my own gig." Dean answered, having caught the glances between Sam and Riley. He narrowed his eyes at them, but he could see that Riley wasn't happy about something, the sight of her worrying her lower lip indicated to that. She saw him looking and straightened, pushing back her unhappiness much to Dean's annoyance. She could be so cryptic about everything. He suddenly realized that she still hadn't told him why she had been alone in the parking lot.

"This wouldn't be the kind of gig with poker cards would it?" She asked, putting her hands on her hips and glaring at him. Dean only gave her that smirk of his.

"No. It was this voodoo thing down in New Orleans."

"Dad let you go on a hunting trip by yourself?" Sam asked and Dean gave him a look.

"I'm twenty-six, dude. Ah, here it is." He drew some papers out of the large envelope. "So Dad was checking out this two-lane blacktop just outside of Jericho, California. About a month ago, this guy," He handed a paper to Sam and Riley looked over his shoulder to read, and had to stand on her tip-toes. "-went missing. They found his car, but he'd vanished. Completely, MIA."

"So, maybe he was kidnapped?" Sam suggested, not thinking that paranormal activity was involved.

"Yeah, well. Here's another one in April." Dean handed out more papers. "Another in December '04, '03, '98, '92. Ten of them over the past twenty years."

"All were men?" Riley asked and Dean nodded.

"All were men. And all on the same five-mile stretch of road. It started happening more and more, so Dad went to go dig around. That was about three weeks ago." Dean looked up then. "I haven't heard from him since, which is enough. Then I get this voice mail yesterday." He flipped his cell open and pressed a button. John's voice came through the speakers full of static.

"_Dean. Something is starting to happen. I think it's serious. I need to try to find out what's going on. It may be…looking for…be very careful Dean. Were all in danger."_ After that Dean shut the phone and looked at us.

"You know there is an E.V.P on that?" Sam asked, hearing the tell-tale ghost signs.

"Not bad, Sammy. Kind of like riding a bike, isn't it?" Dean asked and Sam rolled his eyes. "All right. I slowed the message down and ran it through a Goldwave. Took out the hiss and this is what I got." He played it again and this time a woman's eerie voice came from the speakers.

"_I can never go home."_

"Never go home." Sam repeated thinking it over. Dean shut the trunk and sat against the back.

"You know in two years. I've never bothered you, never asked you for a thing." Dean stated, giving Sam a look. Riley looked at Sam too wondering what his final decision was. He sighed and looked at the building behind him. Riley bet he was thinking of Jessica.

"All right. I'll go. I'll help you find him. But I have to get back first thing Monday." Sam warned and Dean frowned.

"What's first thing Monday?"

"I have this…I have an interview."

"What, a job interview? Skip it." Sam looked shocked and then rolled his eyes.

"It's a law school interview, and it's my whole future on a plate."

"That's wonderful, Sam!" Riley said and hugged him. "I'm so proud of you!" Sam patted her back while Dean looked on. Sam caught the look in his brother's eyes and arched an eyebrow, storing that away. Was Dean…jealous? Or had he simply mistaken the look?

"Thanks." Sam said with a grin, looking back at Riley.

"Law school?" Dean asked, seeming indifferent but both could tell he was impressed. "So do we have a deal or not?" He asked and Sam nodded.

"Yeah."

"You still comin', Blondie?" Dean asked Riley and she rolled her eyes.

"Well, duh. It'd be pointless to have to hitch-hike all the way back."

"Hitch-hike?" Sam repeated. "You mean he didn't ask you come along?"

"Well…he did…after he finally told me why he had toted me to his car in the middle of the night."

"Listen, it was a good thing I did. She was hunting alone."

"What? Riley, you know how dangerous that is."

"You are such a tattletale."

"What were you thinking?"

"I almost had it, when Dean showed up."

"It was about to kill you. Why were you even attempting to take it alone?" Dean snapped and Riley sucked in a breath.

"It's none of your business." She hissed, eyes suddenly shimmering. Sam could tell that there was more to this story than either he or Dean knew, but Riley wasn't one to let anyone know about her feelings unless she deemed it was necessary.

"Okay, look." Sam said loudly. "I'm going to talk to Jess real quick and then we can go, all right?"

"Fine." Both of them stated and Sam hurried from the scene.

"What the hell?" Dean demanded once Sam was out of earshot. "What do you mean it wasn't any of my business?"

"It may come as a surprise to you but I am an adult! I don't need you to constantly follow me. I'm twenty-one for God's Sake, not twelve!" Riley yelled, seething angrily.

"Fine." Dean sneered and turned from her. "I won't do it anymore." Riley tossed her hands in the air and climbed into the back of the car, sitting as comfortably as she could. Dean cast the blond in the car a glare and shook his head. He sighed irritably and turned at the sound of Sam's footsteps.

"There you are. Thought you were going to take all night." Dean said teasingly but Sam only rolled at him. Sam glanced at Riley as he opened the car door.

"You sure you don't mind, sitting back there?" He asked her and she shook her head with a grin. Sam was the nicest guy she knew...other than…Eli… Riley blinked back the tears that formed at the thought of the name and she quickly hid recovered before Sam could get a good look at her in the dimly lit car.

"Don't worry about me, I get more leg room." He laughed as she stretched out across the back.

"So, ready to go?" Dean asked starting the engine.

"Yeah, I guess." Sam said and Dean nodded.

"What about you, Blondie?"

"Ready as I'll ever be." She muttered and Dean gave her a dirty look in the review mirror. She responded by sticking her tongue out at him. They took off down the road seconds later and within minutes Riley was asleep. Sam looked at her and then to Dean before shaking his head. This was going to be a long drive.

* * *

The next morning Dean pulled up to a gas station and Riley was humming to the Allman Brothers Band, _Ramblin' Man_, leaning against forward against Sam's seat.

"Lord I was born a ramblin' man…" She sung softly in his ear and Sam let out a laugh. "What?"

"I can't believe you listen to this stuff." Riley rolled her eyes as she giggled.

"I don't really, but classic stuff like this gets stuck in your head when you've heard it for years." Dean suddenly appeared and better yet, he had a cigar hanging out of his mouth. Riley wrinkled her petite nose. Cigarettes she could handle but not cigars. _Gross._

"Hey. You want breakfast?" He asked Sam, holding snacks up and Sam shook his head.

"No thanks."

"Breakfast, Blondie?" Riley nodded and he handed her a Coke and pack of white powered donuts.

"You remembered what I liked?" She asked in bewilderment and Sam laughed as Dean rolled his eyes.

"How could I not? You practically made the rest of us eat them daily."

"I did not! I just wanted you to try them when you visited." Riley said simply took her breakfast, sliding back into the back seat with the items. Dean grinned at the ground but she knew that he was smirking at what she had said.

"So how'd you pay for that stuff?" Sam asked and looked at Dean. "You and dad still running credit card scams?"

"Yeah well, hunting isn't exactly a pro-ball career." Dean took the gas pump out of the car and put it back on the hanger before closing the gas door. "Besides all we do is oblige. It's not our fault they keep sending us the cards." Sam snorted and Riley smirked.

"And what names did you write on the application this time?" Sam asked and Riley had to hold back laughter as Dean gave her a wink.

"Uh, Burt Aframian and his son, Hector. We scored two cards out of the deal."

"Sounds about right." Sam shook his head, and then he looked at the pile of tapes in his lap. "Man you gotta update your cassette tape collection." Riley burst into laughter and Dean looked confused.

"Why?" He asked a slight aggressive look on his face. _Here we go, _Riley rolled her eyes.

"Well for one they're cassette tapes. And two…" He dug through them and pulled some out to read. "Black Sabbath? Motorhead? Metallica? It's the greatest hits of mullet rock." Riley was now giggling loudly in the back seat. Dean snatched the cassette out of Sam's hand.

"Yeah…"Dean drawled. "House rules, Sammy. Driver picks the music, shot-gun and backseater shut their cake-holes." He tossed the cassette back into the box and Sam

"Hey!" Riley protested and Dean smirked at her in the mirror.

"You know "Sammy" is a chubby twelve-year-old. It's Sam okay?" Sam's mutters could barely be heard him over Dean's pick of music ACDC's _Back in Black_.  
"Sorry, I can't hear you. The music is too loud." Dean retorted and he gave a laugh before pulling out of the gas station.

They headed down the highway in silence, Sam eyeing Dean every few minutes and Riley was bored out of her mind. Several hours later, they passed a sign that read: Jericho 7. Sam had taken it upon himself to call hospitals and such to find a clue of John. Riley inwardly prayed that he wasn't in any of those places. Not that she didn't want to find him, but she didn't want him hurt or…worse.

"…Thank you." She caught the end of the conversation as Sam shut his phone. "All right, so there's no one matching dad at the hospital or morgue. So that's something I guess." Sam told them and Riley sighed aloud with relief.

"That means that he's still on the case somewhere." She smiled a little and Sam did too.

"Hey, check this out." Dean pointed out a window and Sam and Riley saw cop cars surrounding the edge of a suspicion bridge. Dean opened the glove compartment and dug through for the fake IDs that they would use today. Dean handed one to Sam and one to Riley who smirked at Sam.

"Follow my lead, boys." She stated when they got out of the car and Dean snorted. Riley slipped on a pair of fake glasses tossed her red leather jacket on and took out a pad and pen before tying her hair back.

"Intern." She said simply and towards the police officers. Sam rolled his eyes as Dean's eyes landed on the blond in front of them and he smacked his arm.

"What?" Dean asked defensively. "I wasn't doing anything."

"Right." Sam muttered and they followed Riley across the bridge to the cops that were surrounding a car.

"You fellas had another like this just last month, didn't you?" Dean asked confidently. Confidence was key for a good lie.

"And who are you?" An officer asked, looking a bit annoyed.

"Federal Marshals." Dean said, flashing his badge to the man.

"You two are a little young to be federal marshals, aren't you?"

Dean laughed. "Thanks, that's awfully kind of you." He murmured and walked past. The officer looked at Riley, his eyes roaming her figure much to Sam's disgust.

"Who's she?" Dean heard the question and looked over at Riley, who was pretending to take notes of what was going on, tapping her mouth with the eraser of her pencil.

"Intern." He said simply before calling out to Riley. "Carter!" The girl whipped her head around like she had been scolded.

"Sir?" She stated, scrambling over to stand next to Dean and sounding very much like the nervous intern she was pretending to be. Sam looked at her in slight shock. Why wasn't she an actress? She pushed up her glasses with a finger nervously.

"Are you getting all this?" Dean barked at her and she nodded, almost jumping timidly. Dean looked back the officer with shrug. "Interns." He scoffed and then asked: "You did have another one just like this, correct?"

"Yeah, that's right. About a mile up the road. There's been others before that," The Officer replied.

"So, this victim…you knew him?" Sam questioned and like the obedient intern, Riley followed him as he walked a bit.

"Town like this, everybody knows everybody."

"Any connection between the victims, besides that they're all men?" Dean asked walking around the car and Riley followed him, her pencil flying across the notepad. Sam almost smiled when she bumped into Dean's back as he came to stop. Dean sent her a look of annoyance with a hidden smirk and Riley stepped back, a fake flush to her cheeks.

"No, not so far as we can tell," The officer said, watching Riley too.

"So what's the theory?" Sam asked.

"Honestly, we don't know. Serial murder? Kidnapping ring?" I shook my head and chuckled.

"Well, that is exactly the kind of crack police work I'd expect out of you guys." Dean scoffed with his usual attitude and Sam stomped on Dean's food, hard. Riley muttered behind him.

"Watch it, stupid."

"Thank you for your time." Sam said before starting to walk away with Dean and Riley following him. "Gentlemen." Riley waved to the policemen.

"Thank you." She called to them flirtingly and Dean rolled his eyes before tugging her away from the men. Once they were a good few feet away, Dean slapped the back of Sam's head.

"Ow! What was that for?" Sam hissed in pain.

"Why'd you have to step on my foot?" Dean retorted.

"Why do you have to talk to the police like that?" Sam asked angrily. Dean looked at Sam, moving in front of him, forcing him to stop walking so he could look him in the eye.

"Come on. They don't really know what's going on. We're all alone on this. I mean, if we're going to find Dad we've got to get to the bottom of this thing ourselves."

"You two better calm the hell down." Riley hissed. "There's a cop behind us."

Sam glanced over Dean's shoulder and Dean turned to look at the Sheriff now standing before him. The Sheriff small, broad shouldered, and had a belly that Riley suspected held too many donuts. He gave them all a stare down along with two men that were standing on either side of him.

"Can I help you boys and young lady?" He asked and Riley frowned.

"No sir, we were just leaving." Dean replied as the two men passed by. They were dressed in black suits, white shirts and tie Riley gulped. They were FBI. "Agent Mulder. Agent Scully." This time, Riley hit his arm in a hard punch.

"Shut up." She snapped. "You want to get us arrested?"

"Shit, that hurt." Dean cursed. "Relax, Riles. I've got this."

"Yeah, right." She scoffed and Dean glared at her.

They drove into town and there they found a young girl wearing a deep brown leather jacket and dark brown hair that was pulled back in a messy ponytail. She was pinning posters to the outside of the local movie theatre.

"I bet you that's her." Dean stated and Riley rolled her eyes.

"Whatever gave you that idea?" She mocked. Sam snorted and Dean sent them both glares as they walked up to the girl.

"Excuse me." Riley said taking charge before Dean could open his mouth. "Are you Amy?" The girl looked at her curiously and to the boys behind her before nodding.

"Yeah." She responded quietly and Riley sighed internally. She knew what it felt like to lose someone like that. Far too well in fact. Dean noticed that Riley had gone quiet suddenly and stepped forward.

"Yeah, Troy told me about you. We're his uncles. I'm Dean, this is Sammy, and this…is my wife, Riley." Dean stated. She almost jumped at Dean's voice, before her waist was encircled by Dean's arms. If she hadn't been a born actress she would have freaked, but that didn't mean that she didn't feel the heat his body was emitting and she flushed a bit.

"Yes, it's so nice to meet you." She made herself say to the girl in front of them.

"He never mentioned you to me." Amy stated, turning away from the wall.

"Well, that's Troy, I guess." Dean laughed. "We're not around much, we're up in Modesto."

"So, we're looking for him too, and we're kinda asking around." Sam stepped in, wanting to hurry this interrogation along.

"Hey, are you okay?" A girl came up to Amy, her eyes looking over at the three strangers warily. Riley couldn't really blame her. _Small towners often stick up for each other._

"Would you mind if we ask you a couple of questions?" Riley asked the new girl and she nodded.

* * *

Riley was made to sit right in between Sam and Dean in the dinner booth and opposite of them sat Amy and her friend Rachel, the girl from earlier.

"I was on the phone with Troy. He was driving home. He said he would call me right back, and...He never did." Amy was saying sadly. Riley wiggled, trying to get Dean off her side. It didn't help the way he was sitting in the seat, nearly turned towards her. Sam patted Riley's hand hoping to send his apologies that she's being squished and she smiled at him thankfully.

"He didn't say anything strange, or out of the ordinary?" Sam asked, once he looked away from the short girl beside him.

"No. Nothing I can remember." Amy replied.

"I like your necklace." Riley spoke up. She nodded at the pendant that Amy wore. It was a pentagram in a circle. She looked down at it and held it up to show her better as she murmured:

"Troy gave it to me. Mostly to scare my parents-" She laughed. "With all that devil stuff."

"Actually it means just the opposite," Sam interjected and Riley smiled. "A pentagram is protection _against_ evil. Really powerful. I mean, if you believe in that kind of thing."

Dean looked at Riley and rolled his eyes. "Okay. Thank you, _Unsolved Mysteries_." He shook his head at him, and Riley sighed.

"Don't be an ass." She muttered under her breath and Dean ignored her.

"Here's the deal, ladies." He said. "The way Troy disappeared, something's not right. So if you've heard anything..." Amy and Rachel looked each other at that and of course it didn't go unnoticed by the three hunters.

"What is it?" Dean asked and Riley looked at them in interest.

"Well it's just... I mean, with all these guys going missing, people talk." Rachel said slowly.

"What do they talk about?" Sam and Dean asked almost excitedly at the same time. Riley snickered.

"It's kind of this local legend. This one girl? She got murdered out on Centennial, like decades ago. Well, supposedly she's still out there." Rachel said, looking a bit ready to agree if the three across from her didn't believe her story. She hardly believed it herself. "She hitchhikes, and whoever picks her up? Well, they disappear forever." Riley looked at Sam and then at Dean. Now they had something.

* * *

"Where are the lights in here?" Riley muttered, plopping down in a seat on the other side of Dean. "How do they expect people to read in here?" Dean snorted and went back to typing as Sam looked over his shoulder. They were in the local library looking up what the could with the information they had just received.

Female Murder Hitchhiking". Dean typed and hit enter. They waited as the little hourglass on the screen indicated it was searching and loading. It came back with zero hits much to their disappointment. Dean replaced the words with more "Female Murder Centennial Highway". Again, it was zero results.

"I'm bored." Riley pouted and Dean cast her a look. She stuck her tongue out and went to browse the shelves.

"Let me try." She heard Sam say and then a loud smack. She rolled her eyes and turned around to see Sam glaring at his brother.

"I got it." Dean said snappishly and Sam shoved Dean's chair out of the way, rolling it towards Riley.

"Dude!" Dean exclaimed, punching Sam in the shoulder when he rolled back. "You're such a control freak."

Sam ignored him, typing quickly. "So angry spirits are born out of violent death, right?"

"Yeah," Dean answered, still pouting and Riley popped him on the head with a random book. Dean grabbed at her, but she step-sided him. "Watch it, wifey."

"Shut up." She snapped at him. Sam ignored the exchange.

"Well, maybe it's not murder." He muttered, typing again. "There was one article, dated April 25, 1981 titled "Suicide on Centennial."

"What's it say?" Riley asked curiously.

"This was 1981. Constance Welch, twenty-four years old, jumps off Sylvania Bridge, drowns in the river." The three of them glanced at the article, glancing at the picture.

"She was pretty." Riley murmured softly.

"Does it say why she did it?" Dean asked.

"Yeah," Sam answered. "An hour before they found her, she calls 911. Apparently her two little kids are in the bathtub. She leaves them alone for a minute, and when she comes back, they aren't breathing. Both die." Riley gasped.

"That's horrible." She said and Dean looked at her. Sam scrolled down to photos of a bridge and one of a man standing near it, his head resting in his hand.

"'Our babies were gone, and Constance just couldn't bear it,' said husband Joseph Welch." Sam finished.

"That poor man." Riley stated and Dean looked back at the photograph

"That bridge look familiar to you?" He asked and both Riley and Sam nodded. It was the same bridge where Troy's car had been found.

* * *

The moon lit their way over the bridge. Riley kept away from the edge, trying her best not to cling to Sam or Dean. She hated water. Actually, she was afraid of drowning in it.

"So this is where Constance took the swan dive." Dean stated the obvious as he leaned forward. Riley panicked.

"Don't lean out like that! What if you fall in?" She scolded and Dean looked at her.

"Really, Blondie? What are you a mother hen?"

"I…Just don't want to have to fish you back out." She quipped out quickly.

"You think Dad would have been here?" Sam asked trying to stop the sure to be fight before Dean or Riley got too pissed.

"Well, he's chasing the same story and we're chasing him." Dean shrugged like it was nothing and Sam frowned.

"Okay, so now what?" Sam asked, trying to keep up with him. Riley's teeth chattered as she hurried to stay nearby.

"Now we keep digging until we find him. Might take a while."

Sam stopped walking and Riley sensed a fight coming on. "Dean, I told you, I've gotta get back by—" Dean turned around and Riley almost swore she saw a little regret in his eyes, but then again it was probably a trick of the moonlight.

"Monday. Right. The interview." Dean deadpanned with a straight face. He sounded neither ecstatic nor angry so Riley wasn't sure what he was thinking.

"Yeah." Sam said.

"Yeah, I forgot. You're really serious about this, aren't you? You think you're just going to become some lawyer? Marry your girl?"

"Dean, stop that." Riley said, looking from him to Sam. "Don't start this."

"Maybe. Why not?" Sam asked angrily.

"Does Jessica know the truth about you? I mean, does she know about the things you've done?" Dean demanded.

"No, and she's not ever going to know." Sam said quietly and Riley sensed a storm coming.

"Well, that's healthy. You can pretend all you want, Sammy. But sooner or later you're going to have to face up to who you really are." Dean started walking again and with a frustrated look, Sam followed.

"And who's that Dean?" He asked and Dean looked at him.

"You're one of us."

Sam moved and got in front of Dean and took his arm, stopping him from walking. Riley bit her lip. _Here comes the confrontation. _

"No. I'm not like you. This is not going to be my life." He snapped, trying to convince himself more than Dean.

"Well, you have a responsibility to—"

Dean was interrupted by Sam. "To Dad? And his crusade? If it weren't for pictures I wouldn't even know what Mom looks like. And what difference would it make? Even if we do find the thing that killed her, Mom's gone. And she isn't coming back." Dean's temper flared and he grappled Sam, shoving him against the railing of the bridge by the collar of his shirt. Riley hid her eyes, only to peer through her fingers seconds later. They were too close to the edge for Riley's liking and Dean looked like he couldn't decide what to do with Sam.

"Don't talk about her like that." He whispered vigorously before leaving go of Sam and walking away. Riley sighed with relief that they were no longer near the railing and then sighed heavily.

"Please stop playing by the rails." Riley begged. "It's bad enough we're out here in the dark."

"You don't like bridges?" Sam asked, trying to get his mind off of Dean. Riley opened her mouth to respond when…

"Hey." Dean said, and something in his tone caught their attention. Sam and Riley turned around to see a lady in a tattered white dress, standing on the railing. The woman looked over at them, her long dark hair blowing in the wind. Riley gasped as suddenly she stepped off the railing and just like that the trance was over. Sam and Dean darted forward and Riley ran after them.

"Where'd she go?" Dean asked, looking over the railing. Riley stayed back from the edge.

"I don't know." Sam muttered. The Impala's engine suddenly roared to life, the headlights turning on to shine down the bridge at them and Riley jumped.

"Dean!" He turned and frowned.

"What the—" He started, wondering who in the hell got in his car.

"Who's driving your car?" Sam asked, warily. Without looking away from the precious car, Dean pulled his keys out of his pocket and jingled them in front of Sam. Just then the Impala jerked forward, roaring down the stretch of highway along the bridge. They stood frozen for a second before they knew that they were going to be hit.

"Go! Go!" Sam called out.

"We've got to jump!" Sam called as they ran down the road, trying to get away from the car.

"No, I can't!" Riley screamed.

"You've got too!" Dean snapped and he made a turn at the same time that Sam did. Sam pulled Riley along seeing how reluctant she was. Riley jumped over the edge, praying to God that she didn't die. Seconds later she landed on the water below.

* * *

Sam clung to the underside of the bridge, gasping for air and looking frantically for his brother and Riley. He climbed up so that he was sitting on the railing and looked back at the water.

"Dean! Dean!" Sam yelled panicking. "Riley!"

"What?" A tired reply came from below and Sam sighed with relief as a figure pulled itself out of the water, covered in mud as he inched up the embankment.

"Hey, where's Riley?" Sam called and Dean shot up, looking around.

"Shit." Sam heard him curse and then Dean went back in the water. Minutes ticked by and finally Dean broke the surface again, pulling a muddy blond whose hair was now the color of milk chocolate.

"She is, okay?" Sam asked and Dean laid her on the ground.

"Riles?! Riley!" Dean called shaking her and finally she coughed up water. Riley choked and started flailing. "Easy." Dean grunted when she gave him a hit on the arm. She calmed down and started to shake, letting Dean hold her. Just as his hands landed on her back, she got away from him a frantic look on her face. She felt her neck and sighed with relief as her fingers found the necklace still attached.

"She's okay, Sammy." Dean called as Sam ran down towards them, unable to stand waiting up on the bridge. Sam smiled. Dean looked at Riley. "So, anything you want to tell us?"

"I can't swim." She whispered. "I'm afraid." She paused a moment and then looked at her bare feet. "And I lost my shoes." Dean snorted. Sam hugged her after he helped her to her feet and kept her close since she was shivering.

"It's okay, I'm just glad you and Dean are all right."

"Yeah, just super." Dean muttered and Sam laughed.

* * *

"Is it ok?" Sam asked as they inspected the car.

"Yeah," Dean answered. "Whatever she did to it seems all right now." He looked crossly at the spot they had just jumped from and shouted: "That Constance chick, what a _bitch!" _

"I don't think she heard you." Riley retorted, wringing out her hair.

"Well, she doesn't want us digging around, that's for sure." Sam murmured and then he looked over at the muddy Dean. _"_So where's the job go from here genius?" Dean only threw his hands in the air angrily.

"You smell like a toilet." Sam stated after a moment. Dean looked down at himself and Riley made a face, smelling her own hair.

"Eww!" Dean and Sam snickered as she attempted to get the mud off.

"Time for a bath, Blondie. Think you can handle that?" Dean teased and Riley looked at him icily.

"You know what? I was going to thank you for rescuing me, but now I'm not."

"Ouch that hurts." Dean retorted and she climbed into the back for the car.

"Well that was nice." Sam said to him.

"What?" He asked. "What'd I say?"

* * *

They arrived at the local motel and went inside, headed right for the lobby desk. Riley attempted to keep from mudding up the floor and ended up just letting water run down her hair. There was no stopping it. Dean slid his credit card down on top of the desk clerk's magazine and smiled.

"One room please." He said lightly and the clerk looked at them with wide eyes. Riley and Dean looked a sight, but he knew better than to ask. Instead he just glanced down at the card.

"You guys having a reunion or something?" The clerk suddenly asked.

"What do you mean?" Sam asked from behind Dean. Riley frowned.

"That another guy, Burt Aframian. He came and bought out a room for the whole month."

Dean looked back at Sam and Riley, raising an eyebrow.

"John." Riley smiled with a whisper and Dean had to smile too. Her smile was contagious.

It didn't take long for Sam to pick the lock to "Burt's room". The yellow door swung open and he stood, stepping into the room with wariness. Dean, Riley saw, was playing look out, but he seemed to not have heard the door unlock. Riley, poked him roughly and when he turned, Sam grabbed the both of them and pulled them inside, shutting the door.

"Whoa." Sam and Riley breathed, taking in the entire room. Every inch of the motel walls were covered in some kind of paper, newspaper clippings, maps, pictures, and a whole lot of John's scribbles on post it notes stuck in random places. Dean reached for the light by the bed and turned it on. A half-eaten burger was sitting there and Riley protested when Dean held it up to sniff it.

"Dean!"

"I had to check, okay?" He said rolling his eyes. "I don't think he's been here for a couple of days at least." Sam bent down to a line of salt ran a handful the salt through his fingers. Riley frowned.

"He was trying to keep something out." She stated and Sam nodded.

"Salt, cat's eye shells... he was worried. Definitely trying to keep something from coming in." He stated and then looked at Dean.

"What have you got here?" He asked, coming up behind him to see and Riley followed.

"Centennial Highway victims" Riley read and Sam followed her line of vision.

"I don't get it," Dean started, "I mean, different men, different jobs, ages, ethnicities. There's always a connection right? What do these guys have in common?" Sam left to look at the papers taped to other walls. His eye caught a note in John's handwriting said _Woman in White; _it was stuck above a printout detailing Constance's suicide. Sam regarded this for a moment before turning on the desk lamp and illuminating sketches from old books. Each displayed a woman in a white dress, looking haggard and staring like she was lost.

"Dean?" Riley whispered and he turned his face to show he was listening. "Thank you…for you know."

"No problem…Just remind me to teach you how to swim, okay?"

"Um…we'll see about that." She muttered and he faced her.

"So….you're okay then?"

"I will be when I'm clean." She stated, eyeing her matted, filthy hair and he snickered.

"Dad figured it out." Sam stated suddenly. Dean turned to look at him as did Riley.

"What do you mean?" He questioned.

"He found the same article we did. Constance Welch. She's a woman in white."

"You sly dogs." He muttered, glancing at the pictures. "All right, so if we're dealing with a woman in white, Dad would have found the corpse and destroyed it."

"She might have another weakness." Sam suggested.

"Well, Dad would want to make sure." Dean said frowning and crossing the room to Sam. "He'd dig her up. Does it say where she's buried?"

"No, not that I can tell. If I were Dad, though, I'd go ask her husband." He tapped the picture of Joseph Welch pinned to the wall. "If he's still alive."

"That's encouraging." Riley muttered much to Dean's amusement.

"Only one way to find out," said Sam. I nodded.

"All right. Why don't you two, uh, see if you can find an address, I'm gonna get cleaned up." He said, heading for the bathroom door. He paused and looked at Riley. "Sorry I call dibs first."

"No fair!" She pouted and he smirked at her. Riley flounced away to look at the walls again.

"Hey, Dean?" Sam called out suddenly. Dean stopped before entering the bathroom, turning back. "What I said earlier, about Mom and Dad, I'm sorry." He apologized, holding his arms slightly out from him like he wanted a hug. Dean held up a hand to him.

"No chick-flick moments." He said. Sam laughed and nodded.

"All right. Jerk." He retorted.

"Bitch." Dean smirked. Sam laughed again as Dean disappeared into the bathroom.

A picture caught Riley's eye and she lifted it from the wall. It was one of her, at age seven, and Bobby. He had her in his arms, and she had been waving at the camera, while he tickled her. There was another one nearby it and it was other one of her tenth birthday. Fifteen year old Dean was making goofy faces, while eleven year old Sam was eating cake. John was hugging her and she remembered that Bobby had been holding the camera. That was when they had been on speaking terms.

Stuck into the frame of a mirror was a photo of John, Dean, and Sam. They had to have been younger than thirteen in the photo and they looked happy. Then Riley almost cried. There was her graduation picture on the mirror too. She hadn't known that John had ever gotten it. She took the photos off the mirror, holding them in her hands and she gave them to Sam.

"Why would he leave these?" He asked and Riley shrugged.

"I don't know…." She whispered and wiped at her face. Then she frowned. Dean was singing loudly in the shower about how he was using up the hot water and she'd never get her turn. Sam only snickered before looking at her bare feet.

"You have more shoes right?"

"There are in the car." Sam nodded.

"Err…so…" She gestured to the beds and Sam rubbed the back of his neck.

"You can sleep in that one. Dean and I can share…Might be less awkward."

"Okay…are you good with that? Because I can sleep elsewhere…"

"No, it's fine. Really. I don't think either of us will be getting much sleep." He said truthfully before sighing. "Riley…I've been meaning to ask you…."

"Yeah?"

"…What happened?"

"I don't know what you mean."

"Why were you alone?" Riley glanced at the door before looking at Sam again.

"I…It's complicated."

"Riley…"

"Can I have the keys? I need to get my clothes out." She said quickly and Sam frowned.

"Yeah, okay." He tossed her the keys and she smiled.

"Thanks." She left the room quickly and headed for the car without another word. Once she got there, Riley opened the door and grabbed her duffle bag. This was all she had left and if she lost anymore then it would be time to update her wardrobe. Riley looked back at the motel room and then lifted her necklace. A diamond ring glittered brightly in the streetlamp as she held up the necklace. There were two rings on it.

"I'm sorry…" She whispered, touching the rings gently. She sucked in a breath, tucking the necklace away again. She couldn't think about this now. She locked the car back and went into the motel room. Sam smiled at her as she sat down waiting for the shower to turn off and she smiled back.

"Don't even think of coming out of there without any clothes on." Riley warned and Dean laughed evilly. He stepped out of the bathroom, a towel wrapped around his lower half.

"What the hell did I just say?" She snapped.

"You never said I couldn't walk around in a towel." He beamed at her and she covered her slowly reddening face as she stalked past him with her clean clothes and slammed the door to the bathroom closed. Sam shook his head as Dean continued to snicker.

"Dean…I think she's hiding something."

"Like what?" Dean asked, though he sounded like he could care less. Sam rolled his eyes.

"I don't know. I tried asking her about why she was alone and she blew it off like it was nothing."

"We all have secrets, Sammy." Dean muttered.

"Yeah, well some secrets shouldn't stay secret." Sam retorted back. Dean only frowned.

* * *

The next morning Sam paced the motel room floor, holding his phone to his ear as he listened to Jessica's message. With a sigh he sat down on the bed after a moment and eyed Riley who was braiding her long hair. She caught his eye and smiled. Dean came out of the bathroom, looked at Riley and crossed over to her, perching on the bed next to her. She frowned as the bed tilted and she kept her hands still so not to mess up her French braid. She was now wearing a pair of denim shorts and a dark green tank top.

"I'm starving." He whined in her ear and she half turned to glare at him crossly. "I'm going to grab something at that diner down the street. You want anything?"

"No."

"Come on…" He said as seductively as possible and Riley suppressed a shiver as his breath hit her ear. "How about some coffee? Aframian's buying."

"Fine, just get away." She stated, moving across the bed and flipping her braid behind her shoulder. Dean snickered at her before grabbing his freshly cleaned button up shirt from the bed and slipping it on. He gave Sam a wave before leaving the room.

"What?" Sam asked suddenly and Riley looked over at him. After a moment, he was slowly standing up. Realizing that something was wrong, she laced up her sneakers and stood up too. "What about you?" Riley went over to the curtains and peered out a bit.

"Cops." She muttered. There were deputies approaching Dean who had his back to them, talking to Sam on the phone. After a brief exchange with Dean the uniformed men glanced at the window of the motel room, Riley hiding along the edge of the window.

"They're coming." She stated and ran to grab her things as Sam scrambled to take everything he could. While he grabbed things, Riley ran and slammed open the bathroom window. "It's a good thing I lost those heels or this would be really difficult." She hissed, sliding out and jumping to the pavement below. Sam didn't comment, but followed her out of the room and down the back alley.

* * *

"Is this the Welch's place?" Riley asked, wrinkling her nose at the old worn down building in the middle of a junk yard.

"This is his address." Sam answered before rapping on the window. A second later, an old man opened the door, his face wary of what the two of them wanted.

"Hi, are you Joseph Welch?" Sam asked politely and Riley gave the old man a reassuringly smile.

"Yeah," The older man confirmed, giving Riley a small smile back.

"We just have a few questions to ask you." She stated. "Do you mind?" Mr. Welch shrugged.

"It's all right I suppose." He stepped out of his house. "Let's take a walk. Don't like to do business on my porch." He led them through the junk yard and looked at them again. "What exactly is this about?"

"We wanted to know if you have you seen this man before." Sam showed him the picture of him, John, and Dean.

"Yeah, he was older, but that's him. He came by three or four days ago. Said he was a reporter." Joseph replied, glancing up from the picture to them.

"That's right. We're working on a story together." Sam said.

"Well, I don't know what the hell kinda story you're working on. The questions he asked me…" He paused, shaking his head in bewilderment.

"About your wife Constance?" Sam finished and the man nodded.

"He asked me where she was buried," Joseph said, looking at Riley now. "What kind of question is that to ask a person?"

"And where is that again?" Sam asked him and Mr. Welch frowned.

"What, I gotta go through this twice?" Suspicion lit up his eyes. "You have any idea how much talking about something like that hurts a person?"

"I'm sorry." Riley apologized quietly, she smiled sadly at Joseph. "It's just fact-checking. Routine questioning. We don't mean to cause you pain. I can only imagine how awful it was to lose someone you love." Sam regarded Riley. That wasn't fake emotion that was real. Had she lost someone?

"In a plot." Joseph answered them, taking Riley's apology to heart. "Behind my old place over on Breckenridge."

"And why did you move?" Sam asked, keeping an eye on Riley.

"I'm not gonna live in the house where my children died." Joseph said with a sad tone and Riley bit her lip.

"That's understandable. Did you ever…remarry?"

"No way." Joseph stated. "Constance, she was the love of my life. Prettiest woman I ever known. I never want to forget that." Riley nodded.

"So you had a happy marriage?" Sam asked, and for a second he seemed to hesitate.

"Definitely." He finally answered.

"Well that should do it. Thanks for your time." Sam said slowly, turning back toward the Impala. Riley could practically see the gears turning in Sam's head.

"Mr. Welch, did you ever hear of a woman in white?" He asked suddenly on a hunch and Riley paused at the car door.

"A what?" The older man questioned, looking confused.

"A woman in white. Or sometimes a "weeping woman"." Sam continued. "It's a ghost story. Well, heh, it's more of a phenomenon really. Um, they're spirits. They've been sighted for hundreds of years, dozens of places, in Hawaii, Mexico, lately Arizona, Indiana." He walked back over to stand in front of Joseph. "All these are different women you must understand, but all share the same story."

"Boy, I don't care much for nonsense." Joseph said, turning on his heel and walking away from Sam. Riley frowned. The man was being a little guarded now. Sam pushed forward and she followed him, waiting to see Mr. Welch's reactions.

"See when they were alive, their husbands were unfaithful to them," Sam continued. "These women, basically suffering from temporary insanity...murdered their children." Joseph stopped walking and slowly turned to face them.

"Once they realized what they had done, they took their own lives. So now their spirits are cursed, walking back roads, waterways. And if they find an unfaithful man, they kill him. And that man is never seen again." Sam finished up and Mr. Welch's face took on a dark look, his eyes blazing with something that Riley could see was guilt.

"You think... you think that has something to do with Constance? You smart-ass!" The man said, looking ready to either yell at them or to start sobbing.

"You tell us." Riley murmured softly. Mr. Welch trembled slightly under heavy emotions.

"I mean, maybe...maybe I made some mistakes." He began. "But no matter what I did, Constance, she never would have killed her own children. Now, you get the hell out of here! And you don't come back!" He shouted, fighting back tears as he stalked away. Sam looked down at Riley to see her bit her lip nervously.

"You okay?" He asked and she nodded not looking at him. "We'd better get out of here."

"Hey, Sam…What are we going to do about Dean?" Riley asked as they pulled out of the junk yard and Sam looked at her with a grin.

* * *

"Do you think it worked?" Riley giggled. Sam smiled.

"I'm sure it did. That was quite a performance."

Riley had called the police stated there had been a shooting across town. If Sam hadn't been with her he would have assumed she was the one being shot at by how terrified she sounded. Sam's phone began to ring and Riley beamed.

"How much you want to bet that's him?" She asked and Sam laughed before answering the phone and putting it on speaker.

"Fake 911 phone call? Sammy, I don't know, that's pretty illegal." Dean's voice praised from the phone and Riley laughed.

"You're welcome." She said and Dean's laughter echoed from the phone.

"Listen, we gotta talk."

"Tell me about it. So the husband was unfaithful. We are dealing with a woman in white. She's buried behind her old house, so Dad's next stop-"

"Sammy would you just shut up for a moment."

"I can't figure out why he hasn't destroyed the corpse yet." Sam finished.

"Well, that's what I'm trying to tell you." Dean interrupted. "He's gone. Dad left Jericho."

"What?" Sam asked in disbelief.

"How do you know?" Riley asked curiously.

"I've got his journal." He replied

"He doesn't go anywhere without that thing." Sam said, frowning and Riley frowned too. Was John running from something?

"Yeah, well, he did this time." Dean replied

"What's it say?" Sam questioned.

"Ah, the same old ex-Marine crap, when he wants to let us know where he's going."

"He gave you coordinates." Riley guessed.

"Righto Blondie. But, I don't know where to yet."

"I don't understand. I mean what could be so important that dad would just skip out in the middle of a job? Dean, what the hell is going on?" Riley suddenly gasped as a woman appeared in the road.

"Sam!" She screamed and Sam slammed on his breaks, tires squealing. The figure disappeared and they skidded to a stop.

"Sam? Sam!" Dean's voice came from the phone, but neither Sam nor Riley had the breath to answer him.

"Take me home." A voice said from behind him and Riley shrieked. Sam whipped his head up to look in the rear-view mirror.

"She's in the car…" He heard Riley whisper.

"Take me home." The woman in white said again.

"No." Sam told her. Suddenly the locks on the door clicked and both Sam and Riley reacted, trying to open them. They wouldn't budge.

"Oh, my God." Riley stated at the sound of the engine roaring. "Doesn't look like you will have to."

"What?" Sam asked, but then his answer came when the car took off without a foot on the gas! Sam tried to turn the wheel, but the lady had a firm grip turning them down the street and towards the back roads. Riley pounded on the car door trying to get out, but it was no use. The car turned down a dirt road and ambled up to the old abandoned house.

"Don't do this." Sam said as the car was turned off.

"I can never go home." The woman stated.

"You're scared to go home." He stated and suddenly Riley screamed. She was tossed to the back of the car like she weighed nothing, hitting her head on the back window. Sam gasped in pain as the woman slammed into him and got in his lap.

"Hold me." She murmured to him. "I'm so cold."

"But you can't kill me." Sam groaned. "I'm not unfaithful." He gasped in pain. "I've never been."

"You will be." She murmured, lifting Sam's face up. "Just hold me." Sam refused and she kissed him. Sam slowly took hold of the car keys, still in the ignition, trying to remain calm as she was kissing him. Suddenly she sat up and disappeared.

"What the hell just happened?" Riley asked, and Sam sat gasping for air. Sam cried suddenly as Constance's hand gripped his chest. Suddenly, the window shattered and Constance let out a ghastly scream before vanishing.

"I'm taking you home!" Sam snapped as Riley sat up blearily in the backseat.

"Wazzhappenin'?" She asked, before Sam busted through the house with the Impala.

"Sam? Riley?" Dean called running through the wreckage.

"Here." Sam mumbled.

"You okay?" he asked and then looked at Riley. "How about you?"

"Never let him drive again." She said dizzily and Dean saw the blood on the side of her head. "He runs into houses."

"That probably needs looking at." He said and then looked back at Sam who was struggling to get out of the car. Dean wrenched open the opposite side door. "Can you move?"

"Yeah," Sam replied. "Can you help me?"

Dean leaned across the seat and took his brother's hand, easing him out of the car. Once he was sure that Sam was okay, Dean leaned back into the car and motioned for Riley to come forward. She moved a bit and Dean could see she was struggling.

"Dean." Sam said almost in audibly and Dean withdrew from the car. Riley didn't mind, her head pounding too much for her to do a thing. Constance was staring at them and before they could react she sent a bureau sliding across the floor and pinned them to the car.

The lights flickered to life suddenly and Constance looked confused a bit frightened. Water began pouring down the staircase behind her and she turned around to coming closer to it. At the top of the stairs were a little boy and girl. Slowly they joined hands and spoke in unison:

"You've come home to us Mommy."

Constance turned away in fear, but the children were now behind her, wrapping their arms around her. She screamed, her white light flickering as they held her tightly. A pulse of energy surged through the room then, causing the house to shake. The three ghosts began to melt into a puddle them melt into a puddle before draining away into the ground. The bureau eased up and Dean shoved it out of the way.

"So this is where she drowned the kids." Dean said, standing over the wet spot in the wooden floor.

"That's why she could never go home. She was too scared to face 'em." Sam added with a nod.

"You found her weak spot. Nice work, Sammy." Dean laughed and patted him on the chest where he'd been injured. Sam laughed painfully

"Yeah, I wish I could say the same for you. What were you thinking shooting Casper in the face, you freak?" He said to Dean.

"Hey. Saved your ass." He responded before probing Riley's head.

"Stop." She said and pushed him away. "It's not that bad." Dean rolled his eyes and eyed his car.

"I'll tell you another thing. If you screwed up my car," He turned to look at Sam with a warning. "I'll kill you."

Sam laughed.

* * *

"Ouch that freakin' hurts, Sammy!" Riley hissed and Sam pulled his hand back.

"Sorry, but you hit your head pretty hard there."

"Do you have to press so hard?"

"Stop whinin' Blondie." Dean snickered as Sam turned back around in his seat.

"Hey, you didn't get tossed around like a rag doll. I get to whine."

"Sure, sure."

"Okay. So the coordinates point to Blackwater Ridge, Colorado." Sam informed them, and Dean nodded. Riley leaned forward.

"How far is that?"

"About 600 miles." Sam replied.

"Hey, if we shag ass, we could make it by morning." Dean was smiling now and Riley saw Sam freeze. Uh-oh. She leaned back wondering what was going to happen now. She suddenly realized that Dean may not want her to come on this next one and she wasn't sure she even wanted too. Did she?

"Dean, um, I..." Sam stuttered to get the words out and Dean sighed.

"You're not going." He said quietly.

"The interview's in like 10 hours. I gotta be there."

"Yeah. Yeah, whatever." Dean's wall was back up again. The feigned indifference. "I'll take you home." Dean's eyes met Riley. "I suppose you want to bail too."

"…I don't know." She replied and Dean didn't look at her again the rest of the drive.

* * *

Hours later they were in front of Sam's apartment building again. Riley climbed out of the car to hug Sam.

"I'll miss you." She whispered in his ear, and pulled back with tears in her eyes. "Don't be a stranger. Call some time."

"I will." He laughed. "And hey," He said before she could get back into the car. "Let me know if you guys need anything okay?" Riley nodded. Closing the door behind Riley, he leaned in the open window, his forearms resting on the window ledge as he looked at his brother.

"You'll call me if you find him?" He asked Dean.

Dean nodded, silent.

"And maybe I can meet up with you later, huh?" He tried again. Riley smiled at him.

"Yeah, all right." Dean replied, his voice doubtful and a little moody. Sam patted the door twice and gave Riley one last look before walking away.

Dean suddenly leaned across Riley to call out the window.

"Sam?" He called out. Sam turned to look back at them. "You know, we made one hell of a team back there."

Sam smiled sadly. "Yeah, we did." He almost wished that the feeling he got being back working with his brother would last. Dean watched his brother disappear inside before looking at Riley.

"You still sticking with me?"

"If you want me." She shrugged and Dean beamed. She shoved him. "Not like that you ass!" She laughed and Dean suddenly frowned.

"Is that…" He trailed off and worried, Riley turned her head. "Sam!" Dean and Riley were running across the ground and towards the apartment.

"Stay here." Dean told her before running into the building.

"Come on, Dean." Riley begged when she still hadn't seen him. She sighed with relief as Dean suddenly appeared, pulling a struggling Sam all the way. He was screaming for Jessica, and Riley put a hand over her mouth when she realized his girlfriend had been inside. Sirens began to wail in the night and Dean turned Riley away from the building as well, taking her and Sam to the car.

"Shh, Sammy." Riley said, hugging the much taller figure to her. "It'll be okay. It'll be okay."

* * *

An hour later, Dean watched the fire trucks, firemen, policemen work around the building, from among the spectators. Riley was silently watching them both, her gaze flickering from Sam who was loading a shotgun to Dean who had finally turned away from the scene.

"Sam?" Dean asked and Sam gave his brother a haunted yet determined look.

"We got work to do." He declared and shut the trunk.

"Sammy, are you sure about this?" Sam only sighed and met Riley's gaze. She nodded at him that she understood and when he walked away she looked at Dean. He met her gaze evenly.

"We better go." He said quietly and she nodded.

* * *

_Review?_


	2. The Wendigo

Chapter 2: The Wendigo

**A week has passed since the death of Sam's girlfriend and the group's first hunt together since they were younger. Sam had changed over those few days and it made things tense at times. Riley had a change about her too and she was more prone to long silences. Dean, of course, was the same, but these new changes in his companions made him a little uneasy which he tried to deal with by his usual indifference. **

Dean looked in the rearview mirror to see Riley sleeping fitfully, tossing her head to and fro. She mumbled and Dean frowned. Next to him, Sam suddenly jerked awake.

"What is this bad dream day?" Dean asked and when Sam looked at him in confusion he jerked his head back.

Sam turned his head towards Riley.

"Riley?" Sam said worriedly and he reached back to shake the frowning girl. "Hey, Riley." His hand barely touched her and she screamed, jerking awake. Dean almost slammed on the brakes and he tossed the blond an irritated look.

"What the hell?"

"Sorry, my fault." Sam apologized, making Dean look at him. Sam looked at Riley. "You were having a bad dream."

"Oh." Riley murmured and both brothers could see the fear still there in her baby blue eyes.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Sam." She murmured, hugging her arms defensively as she glanced out the window. This was a sign of the end of the conversation and they had learned the hard way not to keep asking questions. Dean rolled his eyes and then looked at Sam.

"You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Sam muttered.

"Another nightmare?" Dean inquired and Sam nodded.

"You wanna drive for a while?" Dean asked all of the sudden and Riley sat up in her seat. Sam looked at his brother in disbelief.

"Dean, your whole life you never once asked me that." Sam laughed.

"Just thought you might want to. Never mind." Dean stated, looking back at the road. "How about you, Blondie?"

"No, thanks. I don't want to wreak your car."

"You? Wreak a car? Never." Dean scoffed with a slight hint of sarcasm.

"It's true. I don't like to drive that much. So, unless you want to play dodge the street signs you better drive. Or let Sam." Riley tapped the back of his seat. "Go for it, Sam." Sam laughed.

"Look. You're both worried about me. I get it, and thank you, but I'm perfectly okay." He stated.

"Okay then." Riley stated and sat back.

"Mmhm." Dean hummed and Sam sighed before reaching forward and taking a hold of the map on the dashboard.

"All right, where are we?" Sam asked, looking for the location on the map.

"We are... just outside of Grand Junction." Dean replied.

"You know what? Maybe we shouldn't have left Stanford so soon." Sam sighed quietly.

"Sam, we dug around there for a week." Dean countered him with a small sigh of his own. "We came up with nothing. If we want to find the thing that killed Jessica-"

"We gotta find Dad first." Sam finished with a frown and looking unconvinced and Dean knew it.

"Dad disappearing, and this thing showing up again after 20 years? It's no coincidence Sam." He said.

"John will have answers." Riley said aloud from the back seat. "He always does."

"See? Confidence." Dean grinned at Sam who shook his head.

"It's just weird," He said after a minute.

"I know." Riley spoke up. "We haven't eaten all day. It's weird because I'm not hungry." Dean rolled his eyes while Sam chuckled.

"No, not that. These coordinates he left us. This Blackwater Ridge."

"What about it?"

. "There's nothing there. It's just woods. Why is he sending us to the middle of nowhere?"

"Berry picking? A nature hike?" Riley suggested. Then after a moment she added: "You know what? Actually I am hungry."

* * *

At the local Ranger Station, Riley and Sam stood in front of a 3D map of the national park. Dean was wondering around behind them. Reaching out with one hand, Sam pointed to a section of the map labeled Blackwater Ridge.

"So Blackwater Ridge is pretty remote. It's cut off by these canyons here," Sam moved his hand to indicate the areas he was talking about, "Rough terrain, dense forest, abandoned silver and gold mines all over the place." He rested his hands against the side of the table holding the map, and let out a long, deep breath.

Dean was behind us, looking at the miscellaneous tourist attractions in the ranger station. He was standing in front of an old photograph on the wall.

"Dude, check out the size of this friggin' bear!" Dean called out and Riley rolled her eyes.

"Way to pay attention, sport."

"No, seriously come look at this." Dean stated and with a sigh Riley and Sam went over to him.

"And a dozen or so grizzlies in the area." Sam murmured to finish his observation from earlier. "It's no nature walk, that's for sure." Riley shuddered.

"That's scary. It's good that I don't like to go to national parks." Dean snickered and wrapped an arm around Riley playfully.

"Come on, Riles. Don't you want to walk among the trees?"

"It's not the trees I mind or the hiking…just the wildlife."

"You lot aren't planning on going out near Blackwater Ridge by any chance?" A voice sounded behind them and Riley gave a jump, clinging to Dean like she had been shot. Dean and Sam were startled too and turned around. The man in front of them was one of the older local rangers.

"Oh, no, sir," Sam said quickly. "We're environmental study majors from UC Boulder, just working on a paper."

"Recycle, man." Dean pumped a fist in the air, making Sam laugh a little nervously at the comment. Riley, only blinked.

"Bull," The ranger said with a smirk. "You're friends with that Haley girl, right?" He said, before anyone could come up with something to say.

"Yes. Yes we are, Ranger…" Dean lied and leaned forward to peer at the man's nametag. "Wilkinson." The ranger nodded and then looked at the three of them with a bit of warning in his eyes.

"Well I'll tell you exactly what we told her. Her brother filled out a backcountry permit saying he wouldn't be back from Blackwater until the 24th, so it's not exactly a missing persons now, is it?" He took a sip from his coffee mug and waited for the protesting which was sure to come, but it never came. Riley shook her head. "You tell that girl to quit worrying, I'm sure her brother's just fine."

Dean nodded this time. "We will. Well, that Haley girl's quite a pistol, huh?" He added as the ranger walked away.

"_That_ is putting it mildly," The man agreed and Dean smiled.

"Actually, you know what would help is if we could show her a copy of that permit. You know, so she could see her brothers return date for herself." The ranger nodded and then went to the back room to make a copy. Dean moved and then realized that Riley was still clinging to him, almost under his jacket with him. He grinned down at her.

"Hey, how's it going?" Riley looked up and gasped, jumping away from him.

"Sorry, guess I'm a little jumpy."

"That's okay, you can jump me anytime." He winked at her and Riley rolled her eyes.

"In your dreams." She huffed and smacked his arm.

"Every night." He teased and she glared at him. Sam saw the pink that tinge on her cheeks, when she had her back to Dean and raised an eyebrow. The ranger came back in and handed the paper to them.

"I hope you talk some sense into that girl." He told them and Riley smiled at him.

"We'll try."

* * *

"Yeah." Dean laughed as he folded the paper on the way out of the ranger station. Sam, slightly annoyed, moved forward.

"What, are you cruising for a hookup or something?" He all but accused and Dean looked at him.

"What do you mean?"

"The coordinates point to Blackwater Ridge. So what are we waiting for? Let's go find Dad." He stated quickly, his voice full of agitation. Riley remembered feeling the same frustration of trying to find someone and decided to stay out of this one. "I mean, why even talk to this girl? Dean walked around to the driver's side of the car and looked back at Sam over the top. Riley waited behind Sam.

"I don't know, maybe we should know what we're walking into before we actually walk into it." Dean said with a 'duh' like attitude and stared at Sam like he was someone else. Sam stared back.

"What?" He said finally in irritation.

"Well, since when are you all "shoot first, ask questions later" anyway?" Dean asked, curiously.

"Since now." Sam stated and opened the door. "You can ride in the front this time." He told Riley.

"Oh, really?" Dean asked in amusement and looked at Riley. She was looking a little sympathetically at Sam and there was something in her gaze that told him that at one time she had acted like Sam did now. It confused him as well as intrigued him and he glanced at her once they settled into the car. _Well, I always like a good mystery._

* * *

Dean knocked on the door to the address on the permit. The door was opened by a girl that looked around Riley's age with dark shoulder length curls, tanned skin and had the attitude of a girl who doesn't take anything from anyone. Riley wasn't sure she'd like this girl who was peering at them from behind the screen door that was still shut. Dean was sure he liked her.

"You must be Haley Collins." Dean said stepping forward with Riley and Sam standing behind him. "I'm Dean, this is Sam and Riley." He gestured to each as he mentioned their name. "We're rangers with the Park Service. Ranger Wilkinson sent us over. He wanted us to ask a few questions about your brother Tommy."

"Let me see some ID." Haley said without hesitation. Dean showed her his fake ID and the girl looked at it intently. _Smart girl_, Riley thought. After a few seconds, she opened the screen door. "Come on in." She pushed on the door to let them by.

"Thank you." Riley stated and Haley nodded before she spotted the Impala.

"That yours?" She asked with interest.

"Yeah." Dean answered smugly. He was proud of his car. Sam looked at Riley who rolled her eyes.

"Nice car." Haley said walked inside, leaving them to follow. Dean mouthed something to Sam and walked inside. Riley frowned but followed the brothers into the house. There was a teen with short buzz cut hair at the dinner table, messing with his utensils and he glanced at Riley while she looked at the house with interest.

"So if Tommy's not due back for a while, how do you know something's wrong?" Sam asked as Haley came into the kitchen with a bowl.

"He checks in every day by cell." Haley replied and set the bowl down on the table. "He emails photos, stupid little videos. But we haven't heard anything in over three days now."

"Well, maybe he can't get cell reception." Riley suggested.

"He's got a satellite phone too." Haley responded before heading back into the kitchen.

"Could it be he's just having fun and forgot to check in?" Dean asked.

"He wouldn't do that," The teenager at the table all but snapped at Dean. Dean eyed the young boy who looked away with a frown. Haley came back in from the kitchen carrying another bowl of food before anyone could say a word.

"Our parents are gone. It's just my two brothers and me. We all keep pretty close tabs on each other."

"Can I see the pictures he sent you?" Sam asked.

Haley nodded. "Yeah." She opened her laptop and clicked on a folder, turning the computer around for Sam, Dean, and Riley to view.

"That's Tommy," Haley, pointing to a photo of a smiling, good looking guy sitting in a tent. Riley arched an eyebrow. _Hello, there._

"What about the last video?" Riley asked. Haley nodded and clicked through the pictures to the video in question.

_**"Hey Haley, day six, we're still out near Blackwater Ridge."**_Tommy's voice came through, he was relaxed and calm ad looked as if he was settling in for the night. **"**_**We're fine, keeping safe, so don't worry, okay? Talk to you tomorrow."**_

"Well, we'll find your brother." Dean stated. "We're heading out to Blackwater Ridge first thing."

"Then maybe I'll see you there." Haley countered, walking past Dean to stand behind her younger brother with a determined look. Sam and Dean exchanged looks. That didn't sound good to either of them. "Look, I can't sit around here anymore. So I hired a guy. I'm heading out in the morning, and I'm gonna find Tommy myself."

"I think I know how you feel." Dean said thoughtfully and Riley glanced at him.

"Hey do you mind forwarding these to me?" Sam asked suddenly, pointing to the videos.

"Sure," Haley said with a shrug, though she looked confused.

* * *

Riley sipped her beer, trying to ignore the leers of the men on the opposite side of the room as she walked over to Sam and Dean. They were at one of the small tables, and Sam was digging through his shoulder bag.

"So, Blackwater Ridge doesn't get a lot of traffic." Sam began once, Riley sat down. She looked at him. "Local campers, mostly. But still, this past April, two hikers went missing out there. They were never found." He opened his that held things he had collected for this mission and started flipping through some newspaper articles.

"Any before that?" Dean asked, taking a sip of his beer and eyeing the nachos that Riley was munching on. She smiled at him and held out the basket for him to grab and he took it happily. That was the thing about Riley; Dean could always guarantee some food from her. She never seemed to finish anything, but that was her own. Never be too full when on a hunt.

"Yeah, in 1982, eight different people all vanished in the same year. Authorities said it was a grizzly attack. And again in 1959, and again before that in 1936."

Sam pulled out his laptop and put it on the table. "Every 23 years, just like clockwork. Okay, watch this. Here's the clincher. I downloaded that guy Tommy's video to the laptop. Check this out." He opened it and showed them the video that Haley had sent him.

"Do that again." Dean said, focusing on the video, while Riley frowned. Sam repeated the frames and Riley gasped when she saw the shadow move.

"How many frames?" She wondered aloud.

"That's three frames. That's a fraction of a second." Sam murmured and glanced at his two companions."Whatever that thing is, it can move." Dean punched Sam on the arm.

"I told you something was going on!" He chuckled. Sam rolled his eyes.

"Yeah." Sam muttered and put his laptop away. "I got one more thing."

"What is it?" Riley asked curiously, leaning forward slightly across Dean who looked at her once before looking back at Sam.

Sam placed newspaper article on the table. "In '59 one camper survived this supposed grizzly attack. Just a kid. Barely crawled out of the woods alive." Sam's eyes were now sparkling with excitement of a mystery. Dean looked at the article before looking up. Riley was biting her lip.

"Is there a name?" He asked and Sam was about to answer when someone came to their table.

"Here, sugar." Riley looked up as a waitress replaced her beer with another. Riley frowned.

"I didn't pay for another one."

"It's already paid for. Courtesy of that guy." She smiled and nodded towards the bar. A guy with short blond hair nodded to her and Riley raised the glass to him. Dean frowned, trying to see the guy at the bar, but his gaze was blocked by people playing pool. Sam glanced at Riley and saw how uncomfortable and upset she was.

"Riley?" He whispered so Dean wouldn't hear. "Are you okay?"

"Can we go before some other guy hits on me?" She sounded nervous.

"Yeah, sure." Sam murmured. "We need to find this witness anyway." Sam looked at Dean. "Hey, let's go."

"Huh? Sure." Dean stated and though he wasn't sure who was at the bar giving Riley drinks, he made sure to walk close to her as they made their way out of the bar.

* * *

Shaw, the sole survivor, led the trio of "rangers" through his one bedroom apartment. He didn't seem to mind the reasoning they had for coming over and Riley guessed that the man felt lonely and isolated. Exactly how anyone would feel after surviving something so horrible.

"Look, ranger, I don't know why you're asking me about this." He began. "It's public record. I was a kid. My parents got mauled by a-"

"Grizzly?" Sam interrupted. "That's what attacked them?" Shaw took a puff of his cigarette nodding slowly as he turned to face them. They could tell that he didn't actually believe that.

"The other people that went missing that year, those bear attacks too?" Dean asked, wanting him to tell him what they were waiting to hear. That it wasn't a bear attack. Shaw looked down, refusing to say anything.

"What about all the people that went missing this year? Same thing?" Dean pressed again, stepping closer and Riley followed him.

"If we knew what we were dealing with, we might be able to stop it." She said quietly. "Please, sir, if you know anything tell us…it could save lives." Shaw looked up at the sound of her voice and regarded her.

"I seriously doubt that, little lady." He chuckled humorlessly, slowing settling down in his chair. "Anyways, I don't see what difference it would make. You wouldn't believe me." He reached for a glass on the table in front of him. "Nobody ever did," He sighed.

Sam moved to sit in the chair across from Mr. Shaw and looked at him.

"Mr. Shaw," Sam coaxed. "What did you see?"

"Nothing." He said finally, the fear showing clearly in his eyes and Sam nodded for him to continue. "It moved too fast to see. It hid too well. I heard it, though." He frowned, recalling the sound. "Like a roar. Like... no man or animal I ever heard." Dean felt Riley shift uneasily beside him.

"It came at night?" Sam asked, thinking back to the video. Shaw nodded. "Got inside your tent?"

"It got inside our _cabin__._" Shaw corrected, glancing up at Dean and Riley. "I was sleeping in front of the fireplace when it came in. It didn't smash a window or break the door. It _unlocked_ it_. _Do you know of a bear that could do something like that?" He asked. Sam, Dean, and Riley exchanged worried looks. "I didn't even wake up until I heard my parents screaming."

"It killed them?" The brothers heard Riley whisper. Shaw looked at her.

"Dragged them off into the night." He clarified. Dean glanced at the floor thinking hard and Riley began to worry her bottom lip. "Why it left me alive...been asking myself that ever since." Shaw finished with sadness."It did leave me this, though." He pulled back the collar of his shirt to reveal four thick, massive long scars across his left shoulder and collar bone. Claw marks. Sam and Dean tensed at the sight. He tried to think of what had caused such a mark. This time, Riley's nervous got the better of her and she gripped Dean's arm.

"Easy, Blondie." Dean murmured lowly, half alerting Sam that he was speaking, but she didn't ease up her grip.

Shaw gave them a haunted look."There's something evil in those woods. It was some sort of demon."

"Um, thank you for your time." Riley told the man quickly and edged towards the door.

* * *

"Spirits and demons don't have to unlock doors," Dean said to Sam and Riley as they walked through the halls of Shaw's apartment building and back to the car. "If they want inside, they just go through the walls."

"So it's probably something else, something corporeal." Sam said and Dean smirked.

"Corporeal"? Excuse me professor." He chuckled and Riley giggled.

"Shut up." Sam rolled his eyes. "So what do you think?"

"The claws, the speed that it moves... could be a skinwalker, maybe a black dog. Whatever we're talking about, we're talking about a creature... and it's corporeal. Which means we can kill it." He stalked off ahead of them and Sam looked at Riley.

"So…"

"Um, look. I was just a little freaked okay. The truth is…a few months before Dean picked me up…I was living a semi normal life. I mean, I took on small jobs, but I was slowly getting used to not having to be so cautious."

"You were trying to be normal like I was." Sam surmised and Riley suddenly looked fearful.

"You can't tell Dean, Sam. He already hates it when we mention not doing the job. As far as he knows, I'm still in the career. I've always been in the career."

"But Riley..."

"Please, Sam…" She begged. "He'll try to send me away if he thinks I can't handle this." Riley pleaded.

"Trust me. I can still do the job…" She left, leaving Sam to walk alone.

"Hey." Dean greeted her and she smiled at him. He frowned at her hardly existent smile. "What?"

"Nothing." Riley said quickly and ducked her head, looking down into the trunk with him. Dean rolled his eyes. "Need some help?"

"Yeah, sure." He responded, still eyeing her every once and a while. "Hand me all those in the corner back there." Riley nodded and reached into the trunk.

"You still know how to shoot right?" He teased after a moment and she looked at him with a smile.

"Of course." Sam approached them and Riley ducked back down into the trunk, hoping that he wouldn't mention the conversation they had just had.

"We cannot let that Haley girl go out there." Sam said to Dean who didn't stop what he was doing which was tossing some ammo boxes into the bag along with the guns.

"Oh yeah?" He said casually, looking up. "What are we gonna tell her? That she can't go into the woods because of a big scary monster?" Riley bit her lip and he nodded, seeing that he was right.

"Well, yeah." Sam stated. Dean straightened up and turned to stare at his brother. Dean was looking at him with a for once serious look.

"Her brother's missing Sam." He said gravely. "She's not just gonna sit this out. No, we go with her, we protect her, and we keep our eyes peeled for our fuzzy predator friend."

"Fuzzy predator friend?" Riley asked, trying to ease the tension and Dean smirked at her as he grabbed the duffel bag and gave it a sling over one shoulder before slamming the trunk shut.

"You can name it, when we find it." He told her and she shook her head with a wrinkle of her tiny nose.

"No, thanks." She stated and Dean snickered. Sam tapped his shoulder.

"Finding Dad's not enough?" Sam said frustrated. He was getting more and more agitated as they went. All he wanted to do was find his father, but with these distractions… Not that he thought Riley was one, no, he knew better than that. She had been trained just as hard whenever she had been with them. He wasn't sure how tough Bobby's lessons were, but he knew that his own father's were hard core. Yet, despite everything she had stuck to it, showing no weakness to John which he had almost been proud of, though he never showed it.

"Now we gotta babysit too?" Sam finished. Dean just stared at Sam and after a second, his temper rose again. "What?!"

"Nothing." Dean said tossing the duffel bag at him and making him wince. Why should he say anything? It wasn't as if Sam ever listened. Riley stood looking from one brother to the other, an odd look on her face. Dean waved at her. "Come on, Blondie, get in." He called and Riley looked at Sam once more before climbing into the car.

* * *

"It's so beautiful out here." Riley smiled as Dean drove them through the park trail. She had the window rolled down and her, what Dean called "Laura Ingalls" hair, whipping in the wind. "Thanks for switching seats with me, Sam." Sam couldn't help but grin at Riley's enthusiasm. She definitely hadn't changed that much over the years.

"You're welcome." He told her and then spotted Dean's smirk.

Dean gave her a wicked grin. "You just wanted to sit by me." He told her and she turned her head to look at him.

"No, I didn't." Riley protested, looking at him with a frown. He almost laughed. She was so cute riled up. _Cute? Did I just think that? _Dean wondered and tried to clear his head. "I just wanted to get a good look at where we are going."

"Sure, sure." Dean teased. Riley stuck her tongue out at him before sticking her head out the window.

"Ooh, look at the mountain!" Riley exclaimed. "Isn't it beautiful?"

"You've seen one mountain, you've seen them all, Lassie." Dean told her and she sent him a dirty look.

"Lassie?" She snapped. "What the hell?"

"You were the one sticking your head out the window like a dog." Dean pointed out and she growled at him. "See? There's another point. You're growling at me." Sam sighed as Riley started hitting his brother. Dean's curses filled the car and Sam smacked his head on the seat in front of him. Did they have to bicker so?

"All right already!" Dean shouted and Riley backed off. "I hope my arm isn't bruised…" He muttered and she ignored him, looking out the window again instead.

"Well, there she is…" She spoke up again and Sam leaned forward to see what she was talking about. Sure enough, there was Haley, her brother Ben, and a man who was pulling stuff out of his truck. Hearing them, Haley turned to look with a raised eyebrow.

Riley got out of the car first, pulling her tan hiking jacket on over her white tank, it was so bulky that it covered most of her shorts, and taking out a backpack that she had filled with supplies last night. Sam followed her, carrying the duffel bag.

"You guys got room for three more?" Dean asked casually, shutting his door and walking up to them. Riley shifted the bag on her shoulder, watching the girl look at them warily.

"Wait, you want to come with us?" Haley asked in disbelief. Riley, figured she must have thought they were there to stop them.

"Who are these guys?" The man behind Haley asked, looking the newcomers over. The guy's eyes widened as he took in the blond that walked up with the guys and Riley sucked in a breath. _Oh, shit._

"Apparently this is all the park service could muster up for the search and rescue." Haley replied with a smirk.

"You're rangers?" The guy asked and his eyes were glued to Riley.

"That's right." Dean replied, the group could tell that these two were going to buttheads. The man walked up to Riley while she was re-lacing her boots against a tree. The others were standing around waiting to start the hike.

"I'm Roy." He said causally, and she sighed internally.

"Riley." She offered reluctantly.

"You know, I was surprised to see you last night. I didn't know rangers drank." She looked up to see him eyeing the top of her tank and she frowned.

"I didn't know hunting guides were sleazes." She quipped back.

"Touché." Roy stated with a grin and his gaze lifted to her face. "Well, I am glad to see you again. By the way, I love the braids." He smirked and she frowned.

"Look, let's get one thing straight right now," Riley stated, putting her leg down poking the guy in the chest. "I am not here to screw around. I am trying to help you locate Haley's and Ben's brother so I don't need you getting in my way. Besides," She added. "I am not interested whatsoever."

"Yeah, well what about after?"

"Don't push your luck, it's not happening." She rolled her eyes and turned to face Dean and Sam. Haley was still eyeing the brothers.

"You're hiking out in biker boots and jeans?" She remarked, tilting her head.  
"Well, sweetheart, I don't do shorts." Dean said to Haley who only raised an eyebrow and Riley snorted. Dean merely gave her an amused grin.

"You think this is funny?" Roy said turning to look at Dean. "It's dangerous back country out there. Her brother might be hurt." Dean gave him a look and so did Riley.

"Believe me, I know how dangerous it can be. We just wanna help them find their brother, that's all." He answered coolly, and he turned to walk past, leading them into the forest.

"Yeah, this is _so_ winning me over." Riley stated sarcastically and she walked after Dean who paused and waited for her to catch up.

"Who is he?" He asked her and if she didn't know better she would have said he was jealous. But it was Dean.

"He's the guy that bought me that beer last night." She said as casually as possible.

"The guy in the bar?"

"Yep."

"Wonderful."

"Look, I don't like him, so I'll be alert as always. You don't have to worry. I won't compromise what we're out here to do I'm focused." She told him and walked ahead of him. Dean paused a second with a frown.

"I'm not worried about _that_." He muttered under his breath. As he walked, he suddenly wondered why that even bothered him to begin with. Did he really care if she and Roy had a thing? Dean wasn't so sure and when he wasn't sure about something it tended to bug him.

* * *

A few hours later, Roy led the way through the trees. Dean followed after Roy, his eyes both trained on Roy and the woods around them. Haley and Ben were behind him, leaving Sam and then Riley to bring up the rear. Riley was looking at the scenery rather than paying attention to what was going on ahead of them.

"So Roy, you said you did a little hunting?" Dean asked, glancing up at the tree line and Riley almost ran into him.

"Yeah, more than a little," Roy replied and glanced at Riley who looked away from him. Dean frowned and asked another question, hoping to get Roy to stop looking at Riley. _Who does he think he's trying to impress? We hunt worse things than bears and rabbits. _

"Uh-huh. What kind of furry critters do you hunt?" He asked and Riley glanced at him. Dean winked at her. _Yeah, I just went there. _She seemed to know what he was thinking for she rolled her eyes at him.

_Show off. _

"Mostly buck, sometimes bear." Roy answered and Riley saw him look at her.

"Tell me, uh, Bambi or Yogi ever hunt you back?" Dean joked and took a step. Without warning, Roy grabbed Dean by the back of his jacket and hauled him backwards. Riley frowned.

"Whatcha doing Roy?" Dean asked quietly. Roy didn't answer, but grabbed a stick and stabbing it into the ground a few inches from Dean's foot. A steel bear trap sprung up, snapping metal jaws that would have done damage to anyone's ankle, and Riley's eyes flashed up to Roy and Dean, widening.

"You should watch where you're stepping, _ranger_."Roy said smugly, stepping around the trap and retaking the lead. Riley stepped up for his defense. She didn't like it when people tried to uproot what they were doing. Their phony badges and such were for the people's protection not just their own.

"I guess we are further up than what we sighted on the map." She stated simply and arched an eyebrow at Roy, challenging him to say something else. "There are misplaced traps here and there. We should all watch our step." She flipped her braids over her shoulders and stepped ahead. Roy turned back around. Dean almost grinned as did Sam.

"It was a bear trap." Dean said sheepishly to everyone and Sam rolled his eyes at his brother.

"Yes, that's right." Riley called back over her shoulder and Dean smirked. _Good ol' Riley. _

"That was great…earlier." Dean murmured when she waited for him to come up the path, letting Roy take the lead again. "Nice cover up."

"Just, remember…this lie probably won't last forever with these people." She told him, seeing how Haley was eyeing them. "Someone already suspects us." She left him again as Haley moved up to his side.

"You didn't pack any provisions," Haley said pointedly to Dean after a few minutes of walking side by side with him. "You guys are carrying a _duffel bag_. Riley is the only one that looks legit." She grabbed at Dean halting his steps. "You're not rangers, so who the hell are you?" Sam looked from his brother to the angry unhappy girl wondering if he should stay and help explain or not. Dean gave Sam a nod that he was okay and Sam followed after Ben who had not wanted to acknowledge what his sister was doing. Dean faced her and started to explain.

"So…you and he a thing?" Roy asked and Riley shook her head.

"Nope."

"Really? You both seem rather protective of each other."

"We're like family, practically. We've known each other since we were kids." She explained and Roy stopped to help her when her foot tangled in some bushes. Roy's hand accidently slipped from her boot to her calf and then he let go. His eyes met hers and she swallowed nervously.

"Um, thanks." Riley said awkwardly and Rob nodded.

"What are you doing with these two guys?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, a pretty girl like you spending your time around them? What's the big plan for your future?"

"I don't have one."

"Come on, everyone has a secret agenda for the future. Marriage?"

"No, I don't think I'll ever get married."

"Why not?"

"Oh…um, personal reasons." Riley murmured, turning her head from the conversation and fiddling with her necklace. _Did everything have to be a reminder of _that_ night?_ They continued walking, now an awkward silence between them. Roy came to stop suddenly and turned to face the group.

"This is it. Blackwater Ridge." He stated. Sam and Riley walked past him first with Ben right behind them all three of them, curious. Haley and Dean brought up the rear and it was clear that Haley had forgiven Dean by the relaxed state she was in around him.

"What coordinates are we at?" Sam asked, wondering if this was the spot that his father had written the coordinates down for. Riley looked over Roy's shoulder as the man pulled out a GPS, hoping this was the spot.

"Thirty-five and minus one-eleven." Roy read out. Riley looked over and met Sam's eyes and he nodded once. This was the place. Dean suddenly motioned for them to follow him and he walked a bit away from the rest of the group.

"You hear that?" Dean asked while his eyes were focused on the trees.

"Yeah. Not even crickets." Sam answered. Riley frowned and nodded.

"No birds either." She stated. "I don't like it here. It's creepy." Sam smiled her and she grinned sheepishly back at him. "Well it is." She said in defense and Sam only smiled wider.

"I'm gonna take a look around." Roy said suddenly and the three looked over at him quickly, coming out of their meeting.

"You shouldn't go off by yourself." Sam warned but Roy only smirked at him, being the big time hunter he was.

"That's sweet." He half mocked. "Don't worry about me." He pushed his way between the two brothers and moved into the trees. "See ya." He called back to Riley who only frowned after him.

"It isn't safe to leave him alone out there." She murmured and Dean looked at her.

"Worried?" He mocked half wondering where that had come from. Riley's eyes narrowed at him.

"I just don't want to find a dead body." She snapped, turning on her heels and marching into the trees.

Dean sighed after her. "All right, everybody stays together. Let's go." He murmured and started to follow Riley quickly. They came to another clearing where there were some large boulders and smaller trees. Roy had moved on ahead and Riley soon lost track of him and decided to wait and walk with the others.

Ben leaning pulled back a branch on a tree nearby and Riley stopped him from moving when she had spotted something.

"Hey, Sam." She called. Sam walked over and examined the drawing.

"That's a hell of a find Ben. Those are Anasazi." Sam said with slight praise, a hand reaching out to touch the carving.

"What's that?" Ben asked, with interest.

"Ancient Indians." He replied. "They were this whole civilization that just vanished completely. No one really knows why." Sam frowned slightly at the figure.

"What is it?" Riley wondered and Sam looked her.

"I've seen that somewhere before."

"Haley! Over here!" Roy called from up ahead before Riley could say anything.

Haley took off running toward the sound of Roy's voice and everyone else followed closely, racing over a little embankment into the next clearing. Haley was the first to pause.

"Oh my God." She breathed, her eyes surveying the damage. Tents lay strewn and shredded across the camp site, though most the items remained like they had been put. Dean paused to look at one of the tents which had blood smeared on it and his eyes flickered around the perimeter. Riley was eyeing the upturned camp chairs, sleeping bags, and the assorted camping supplies like dishes, cutlery, utensils that littered the area.

"Looks like a grizzly." Roy commented, looking over at the rest of the group. Riley looked at Dean, hoping he'd know what really did this, but even he looked worried. Haley began to call out for her brother, letting her backpack hit the ground.

"Tommy..." She said lowly before calling out louder. "Tommy! Tommy!" Sam jogged after her and shushed her.

"Shhh." He murmured.

"Why?" Haley wondered aloud and Sam sighed.

"Something might still be out there."

"Sam!" Dean called out a few yards away and Sam and Riley ran over to see what he had found. He was a few yards into the woods, crouching down looking at something on the ground. They came up to him and crouched down.

"The bodies were dragged from the camp site." Dean remarked. "But here, the tracks just vanish. That's weird." He stood up and Riley bit her.

"What is it?"

"I'll tell you what, that's no skinwalker or black dog." He told her seriously. She still looked worried, but quickly hid it.

They returned to the camp site and Dean spotted Haley struggling not to cry over her brother's broken cell phone.

"Hey, he could still be alive," He said reassuringly, but Haley just looked at him.

"Help! Help!" A male voice screamed out a good distance away and everyone stood up. Dean and Roy pulled their guns and ran in the direction they'd heard the screams from with everyone else following close behind. Coming to a clearing they stopped, with Roy was training his gun on the trees around them.

"It seemed like it was coming from around here, didn't it?" Haley asked what everyone was thinking. Riley nodded.

"Everybody back to camp." Sam said suddenly, startling everyone and having them jogging back the way they had just come. Everyone's stuff was gone.

"Son of a bitch!" Dean muttered under his breath.

"Our packs!" Haley cried out angrily and a little scared.

"Someone took my Skittles." Riley pouted and Ben looked at her. "Sorry, but I love Skittles." He smiled just a little while Sam snorted.

Roy looked at the ground where he had set his bag."So much for my GPS and satellite phone." Roy murmured.

"What the hell is going on?" Haley asked worriedly.

"It's smart. It wants to cut us off so we can't call for help," Sam stated and Riley sighed.

"I hate the woods." She muttered and Dean rolled his eyes at her.

"You mean someone, some nutjob out there just stole all our gear?" Roy asked, continuing to look out into the trees as they stood around.

"I need to speak with you…_In private."_Sam uttered to Riley and Dean who both looked over at him in surprise. They moved away from the group like they were looking for tracks, trying and probably failing to look unsuspicious. Sam looked back at the others who were talking amongst themselves before looking at Dean.

"They can't hear us." Riley supplied and Sam nodded.

"Okay." He looked at Dean. "Let me see Dad's journal." Dean handed it to him and Sam began flipping pages. Suddenly the flipping stopped. "All right. Check that out." He told them and turned the book around. There was a picture in it and some writings.

"That's the same thing that was on that tree." Riley murmured.

"That's right." Sam murmured and Dean frowned.

"Oh come on," He laughed. "Wendigos are in the Minnesota woods, or northern Michigan. I've never even heard of one this far west."

"Think about it Dean, the claws, the way it can mimic a human voice..." Sam trailed off and Riley looked at Dean.

"Great..." He scoffed and held up his gun. "Well this is useless then."

"We gotta get these people to safety." Sam stated before they headed back to camp.

"Sam, it's almost nightfall. We don't have much of choice in leaving." Riley protested. "I'm not walking in the dark and it's not a good idea to make Haley, Ben, and Roy march defenseless in the dark either."

"Well, it's not safe for us here." Sam countered. "We have to try at least." He came back into the campsite, Dean and Riley at his heels.

"All right, listen up, it's time to go. Things have gotten... more complicated." He said to the group.

"What?" Haley asked looking back and forth from Sam to Roy. She couldn't believe it.

"Kid, don't worry. Whatever's out there, I think I can handle it," Roy said smugly, patting his gun.

"You don't understand." Riley said. "It's not safe here for anyone."

"It's not me I'm worried about." Sam added. "If you shoot this thing, you're just gonna make it mad. We have to leave. Now."

"One," Roy stated angrily, "-you're talking nonsense. Two, you're in no position to give anybody orders."

"Relax." Dean stated, making Roy look at him.

"We never should have let you come out here in the first place, all right?" Sam practically snapped. "I'm trying to protect you." Roy stepped right up into Sam's face instantly.

"You protect me?" He said arrogantly, mocking the younger man. "I was hunting these woods when your mommy was still kissing you good night."

"Roy." Riley snapped. "Stop it."

"Yeah?" Sam responded, unfazed by Roy's demeanor. "It's a damn near _perfect_ hunter. It's smarter than you, and it's gonna hunt you down and eat you alive unless we get your stupid sorry ass out of here."

"How the hell do you put up with them?" Roy asked, Riley. "Did they fill your head with this bullshit?"

"Stop it, you ignorant ass." Riley put her hands on her hips. Roy laughed, punching Sam in the chest.

"You know you're crazy, right?" Roy pushed Riley aside and she gritted her teeth as Roy stood before Sam.

"Yeah?" Sam challenged. "You ever hunt a Wen-" Dean gave Sam a hard shove interrupting what he'd been about to say.

"Chill out." Dean ordered, pushing a finger to Sam's chest.

"Roy!" Haley yelled. "Stop. Stop it! Everybody just stop!" Haley pushed her way in to the middle. "Look, Tommy might still be alive. And I'm not leaving here without him." Everyone was silent for a moment and then Riley spoke up.

"It's getting dark." She said, looking at Sam and Dean. Both nodded at her.

"This thing is a good hunter in the day, but an unbelievable hunter at night." Dean said for everyone to hear. Riley shivered. She had never seen one, only heard stories, and it worried her. "We'll never beat it, not in the dark. We need to settle in and protect ourselves."

"How?" Haley asked and Dean only patted his jacket, where the journal was sitting.

* * *

When they had drawn the protective circle, they started a fire. Riley, Ben, and Haley gathered around it for warmth. Haley looked over at Dean, wondering if what he was going was real.

"One more time, that's -?" She asked, indicating at the symbols that he had drawn into the ground.

"Anasazi symbols," Dean answered her, without turning around. "It's for protection. The Wendigo can't cross over them." Roy laughed at this, his gun slung over his shoulder as he walked back and forth.

"Nobody likes a skeptic, Roy." Dean muttered loudly. Sam was sitting on the edge of the camp site staring out into the darkness and Riley was worried. She got up, despite the fact that she needed the warmth of the fire and came to sit by him.

"You should sit closer to the fire." She murmured to him and leaned against him. "You're freezing." Sam sighed and looked at her.

"Correction. _You're_ freezing."

"Right." She laughed and then sighed. "You know, I really want some marshmallows." Sam snorted and Riley kissed his forehead when she stood. "It'll stop hurting, Sam. I promise." She murmured and went back to sit try sitting by the fire again. Sam watched her with a stunned expression and slight confusion. What did she know about losing someone like he had Jessica?

Dean walked over to sit where Riley had been seconds earlier. "What's going on in that freaky head of yours?" He asked, plopping down on the log.

"Dean-" Sam began to protest but Dean cut him off.

"No, you're no fine. You're like a powder keg, man. It's not like you. I'm supposed to be the belligerent one, remember?"

"Dad's not here." Sam said after a minute. "I mean, that much we know for sure, right? He would have left us a message, a sign right?"

"Yeah, you're probably right." Dean murmured. "Tell you the truth, I don't think Dad's ever been to Lost Creek."

"Then let's get these people back to town and let's hit the road. Go find Dad. I mean why are we still even here?" Sam asked and he struck at the ground with a stick, looking frustrated. Dean and Sam both jumped when Riley wiggled her way between them.

"You were right. I am freezing." She muttered and snuggled against Sam for warmth. Sam had to smile and tossed an arm around her like a brother would and tugged her closer. Dean frowned slightly at being left out, but knew that he had to make Sam see why they had to stay. He stood up and moved to crouch in front of Sam, he'd pulled John's journal out of his jacket. He held it out for Sam to see.

"This is why." Dean said to Sam and he patted the top of the journal. "This book. This is Dad's single most valuable possession. Everything he knows about every evil thing is in here. And he's passed it on to us." Sam shook his head.

"Maybe he wants us to pick up where he left off. Saving people, hunting things. The family business."

"I'm starting to think that John wants us to go through obstacles to find him." Riley murmured. Dean only rolled his eyes.

"It makes no sense." Sam ran his hands over his face in frustration and Riley tried to calm him down. "Why doesn't he just - call us? Why doesn't he - tell us what he wants, tell us where he is?"

"I dunno." Dean admitted, for once looking unsure. "But the way I see it, Dad's giving us a job to do, and I intend to do it."

"Dean... no." Sam shook his head. "I gotta find Dad. I gotta find Jessica's killer. It's the only thing I can think about." Riley became silent and Dean noticed the faraway look in her eyes. At first he thought there was something wrong, but then Riley blinked at him and hid her face into Sam's jacket with a shiver.

"Okay, all right, Sam, we'll find them. I promise. Listen to me. You've gotta prepare yourself." Dean said trying to pacify him."I mean, this search could take a while. All that anger, you can't keep it burning on the long haul. It's gonna kill you."

"Patience, Sammy." Riley murmured, raising her head up to look at him. "You need to be patient. There's a reason that things are the way they are."

"Sounds like you know from experience." Dean said calculatingly. "What have you had to be patient about?"

"Everything." Riley murmured and looked around at the trees. Dean frowned at her obvious way of blocking out his questions. _What the hell?_

"How do you guys do it?" Sam asked suddenly, his voice breaking and Dean looked back at him. Riley's gaze fell back on him. "How does Dad do it?" Dean sighed and looked over at where Haley and Ben were sitting.

"Well for one, them." He nodded at the siblings. "I mean, I figure, our family's already so screwed to hell, maybe we can help some others.

"Make things a little bit more bearable." Riley said quietly, agreeing with Dean who glanced at her. Sometimes, _most_ of the time, he didn't get her but occasionally they shared the same thought.

"That's right." He nodded. "And I'll tell you what else helps. Killing as many evil sons of bitches as I possibly can." Sam had to smile at that, and Riley smiled too.

"Help me!" A voice in the darkness called out suddenly and a twig snapped a little too close to their campsite."Please!" The voice called out and everyone was on their feet and surrounding the fire. To Sam's surprise and Dean's brief amusement Riley pulled out a revolver out and aimed it at the trees. The brothers exchanged looks and Dean tilted his head to see where she had hidden it. Dean pulled his gun out, cocking it, while Sam and Riley shone flashlights into the trees.

"Help!" The voice called out and Riley shook her head.

"It sounds so…." She struggled for the right word. "…Real." Dean nodded.

"It's trying to draw us out." He said. "Just stay cool. Stay put."

"Inside the magic circle?" Roy mocked, his gun raised in front of him protectively. Riley frowned at him.

"Hey, this magic circle is going to protect you." She snapped at him and he rolled his eyes. Dean briefly wondered where that aggression had suddenly come from.

"Help! Help me, ple-!" The voice again and it sounded like a struggle was going on. An odd growling noise followed and Riley shivered. Roy pointed his gun at the sound.

"Okay, that's no grizzly." He conceded, looking cautiously around and Riley glanced at Haley and Ben.

"It's ok. You'll be all right, I promise." She murmured to him. All the sudden, a flurry of movement rushed past quickly. Haley shrieked and she and Ben moved closer together. Riley gritted her teeth to keep from screaming out herself.

"It's here." Sam said and Roy started shooting at the bushes when someone moved within them. Something cried out seconds later.

"I hit it!" He shouted and started running into the dark.

"Roy! Roy, come back!" Riley shouted. Dean pointed a finger at Riley, Ben, and Haley.

"But, Dean-" She started, but he shook his head.

"Someone's gotta stay here." He indicated the two terrified siblings and Riley nodded.

"Okay."

"It's over here! It's in the tree!" Roy's voice called from up ahead and then there was only Dean calling out Roy's name.

"Oh….no."

Haley looked at her. "What? What is it?" Riley looked at her, having not known she had spoken aloud.

"He's gone." She murmured, looking the girl in the eye. "Roy's gone." Haley put a hand to her mouth, while Ben paled and Riley went to sit on the top of an old stump. Her eyes scanned the trees for a moment and then she took out her cell phone, turning it on. It took the old battered phone a while to even come to life, but eventually the blue screen flickered on. She had twenty missed calls and seven voicemails. There was hardly any signal so she shut the phone and stuffed it back into her oversized jacket, making a promise to herself to answer the messages as soon as she got signal.

Sam and Dean came back a few minutes later, and Riley heard them talking lowly to Haley and Ben. She ignored them and started re-lacing her boots, mostly to have something to do, but also because the boots were a size too big, making them slip down and loosen easily. The heavy tread of Dean's biker boots, alerted her to his presence, but she didn't turn around to acknowledge him.

"Well…Roy's gone." She nodded and heaved a sigh. Dean moved in front of her. "Look, Blondie…about you and Roy…"

"You thought me and Mr. Macho had a thing?" She asked arching an eyebrow. "We didn't."

"Oh…well…okay then." He said awkwardly and Riley sighed.

"It's just that…I didn't want anyone to die."

"That's inevitable Blondie. You know that."

"Yeah, I do. I just…wasn't expecting it." Dean nodded and looked back at where Sam was sitting with Haley and Ben.

"Come on, it'll be morning soon and we need sleep." He started back to the fire and Riley slowly followed him.

"Um…I gotta go." She muttered and Dean looked at her.

"What? Go where?"

"You know." She said rolling her eyes. "_Go_." Dean's mouth formed an "o" and then he waved at her to go on. "I'm not going to pee with you nearby."

"I won't look." Dean snorted. "I'm not letting anyone else out of my sight, okay?"

"Fine. But if you turn around…." She walked off into the trees with Dean behind her.

"I won't look. Just go." Dean stated.

"Stop talking." Riley said. "I can't go knowing your there."

"Women…" Dean muttered under his breath. After a moment Riley spoke up again.

"Okay, you're gonna have to make some kind of noise. It's awkward." Dean groaned aloud. He could feel a headache coming on.

* * *

Daylight shimmered through the trees the next morning and Riley sat up blearily haven gotten hardly any sleep. She looked around for everyone else as she stood up from the ground. Sam was sitting with his back the tree stump she had sat on last night, the journal in his hands. His gaze was far out and unseeing, mind elsewhere than where they were and Riley didn't disturb him as she went by to see where Dean had gone. He was examining claw marks on a tree, Haley not far from him, talking actively.

"I don't…I mean these types of things, they aren't supposed to be real," The girl was saying, head shaking. Dean turned from the clawed tree and walked around.

"I wish I could tell you different." He said softly and he saw Riley. "Morning, Blondie."

"Why didn't you guys wake me?"

"Because you needed the extra sleep." He replied and Riley nodded.

"I wish it had helped." She stated and he smiled at her grimly.

"How do we know it's not out there watching us?" Haley asked nervously.

"We don't," Dean replied. "But we're safe for now." He crouched down in front of her and tried to give her a reassuring smile.

"How do you know about this stuff?"

"It kind of runs in the family." Dean answered after a bit of consideration and then stood up again.

"What about you?" Haley asked Riley who looked surprised.

"Me? Well…I suppose family covers my situation too. I was brought up on doing things like this."

"Hey," Sam said, walking over to them quickly. Both Riley and Haley stood up at his arrival. "So we've got half a chance in the daylight. And I for one want to kill this evil son of a bitch."

"Well, hell, you know I'm in," Dean said excitedly and Riley smiled.

"Me too." She told them and Dean only smirked.

"'Wendigo' is a Cree Indian word. It means 'evil that devours'" Sam explained, pointing at the picture in John's journal and showing it to Ben and Haley. Ben realized it was the same picture he had seen on the tree yesterday.

"They're hundreds of years old. Each one was once a man. Sometimes an Indian, or other times a frontiersman or a miner or a hunter." Dean added, coming to stand next to them.

"How's a man turn into one of those things?" Haley asked as we all watched Dean picking up random items off the ground.

"Well it's always the same." Dean explained picking up things off the ground and examining them. "During some harsh winter a guy finds himself starving, cut off from supplies or help. Becomes a cannibal to survive, eating other members of his tribe or camp."

"Like the Donner Party." Ben said suddenly and Sam nodded.

"Cultures all over the world believe that eating human flesh gives a person certain abilities. Speed, strength, immortality." Riley counted off and Sam smiled at her.

"If you eat enough of it, over years, you become this less-than-human thing. You're always hungry." Dean informed them.

Haley looked at them with fear in her eyes. "So if that's true, how can Tommy still be alive?" Dean looked at Sam and then back at her.

"You're not gonna like it."

Haley sucked in a breath."Tell me."

"More than anything," Dean started, "A Wendigo knows how to last long winters without food. It hibernates for years at a time, but when it's awake it keeps its victims alive. It, uh, stores them so it can feed whenever it wants." Haley looked horrified and so did Ben. Riley was too for that matter, but she didn't show it. "If your brother's alive, it's keeping him somewhere dark, hidden and safe. And we gotta track it back there."

"And then how do we stop it?" Haley asked, looking determined.

"Well, guns are useless, so are knives." Dean said. "Basically -" He held up a can of lighter fluid, an empty beer bottle and the white cloth which he'd picked up from the discarded items around the campsite. "We gotta torch the sucker."

Dean led the way through the trees followed by Riley, Ben, Sam, and Riley. They kept silent for the most part, and after a while started to notice deep claw marks on some of the trees and dried blood. They came into a clearing and Riley looked around as did Sam.

"Dean!" He called suddenly and Dean walked back towards them.

"What is it?" He asked and Sam motioned at the claw marks and blood that were on every tree around them.

"It lured us into a trap." Riley murmured and Dean frowned.

"You know, I was thinking, those claw prints, so clear and distinct." Sam said lowly. "They were almost too easy to follow." A growl came from somewhere close by and everyone looked around in alarm. The bushes rustled every time it went by and Riley backed up into a tree, keeping her eyes peeled for the creature.

Something wet hit Riley's white tank and rained on her jacket. She touched the spots and blanched. It was blood. She looked up slowly and gasped. Roy was hanging above her.

Riley screamed as his body suddenly crashed down from the tree and she fell backwards as it landed with a bone breaking thud on the ground. Sam went over to help her up and she clung to him.

"You okay? You got it?" He asked both Dean and Riley.

"Damn it, his neck's broken," Dean muttered, checking Roy.

"Riley, are you okay?" Sam asked softly and she nodded.

"Of course, Sammy." She murmured, giving him a shaky smile. He looked ready to argue when the growling came again. Dean stood up quickly.

"Okay, run, run, run, run, go, go, go!" He yelled, shooing them all into the woods. Directionless and panicky everyone ran through the trees, each person trying to keep up with whoever was in front of them. Ben tripped over a tree root and Riley and Sam ran back to help him to his feet.

"We got ya." Sam said and urged Ben in the direction Dean and Haley had run. Riley kept her hand on Ben as they ran, trying to find Dean. Haley gave a scream and together, the trio ran towards the sound. When they finally stopped, Sam lifted a broken beer bottle that Dean had been hoping to use in order to torch the monster.

"Haley!" Ben called out worriedly, but was nowhere in sight.

"Dean!" Riley yelled out. Sam met her eyes. The Wendigo had them. Having no choice and no trail they just had to hope that if they kept going straight they would find them.

* * *

"It it keeps its victims alive, why would it kill Roy?" Ben asked as they walked along the forest.

"Honestly?"

"Roy shot it and pissed it off." Riley murmured. Ben suddenly darted up the trail and picked something up from the ground.

"They went this way." He said confidently.

"How do you know?" Riley asked and Ben tossed the small item at her. She caught it and looked down at her hand. It was a peanut M&M.

"I knew he had hidden food!" Riley pouted. "Well, it's a way to find him at least." She admitted and Sam laughed.

"It's better than breadcrumbs." He told her with a smile and they followed the trail of candy.

"You know I've never liked that story."

"Hansel and Gretel?"

"Yeah…I don't like witches." Sam snickered and led the way down the trail of candy. The three soon came upon an old abandoned mine, the entrance barred with boards, and a sign on the side that read '_WARNING! DANGER! DO NOT ENTER, EXTREMELY TOXIC MATERIAL."_

"Okay," Began Riley. "If I were an evil nasty people eating creature, this would be my home." She stated and Sam rolled his eyes before shrugging and going through the loose boards.

Riley's flashlight lit their way through the dark mine and being the only girl Sam made sure she was near him as they walked along. The Wendigo's growls came from further down the mind and Riley turned her flashlight off and Sam pressed her and Ben against the far wall. Ben let out a curse as the Wendigo was suddenly silhouetted against the light shining in from the entrance to the mine. Sam moved his hand and held it over the young boy's mouth, shushing him silently. Riley bit her lip and touched Sam's sleeve. He glanced at her in reassurance before looking back at the monster.

After a moment, the Wendigo went down another tunnel and disappeared from sight. Sam was the first to move and he did so slowly and unsurely. Once he was sure the thing wasn't around he gestured for Riley and Ben to follow him. A little way down the tunnel they went, keeping silent and on the lookout for Dean and Haley.

_Creak._

Riley yelped a bit sounding a bit like a kitten meowing and then looked at her feet. The boards under her feet were wobbly and extremely unstable.

"Sam…" She whispered and he turned to her. Suddenly the floorboards gave away and the three of them were sent falling down into the dark.

* * *

Riley moaned and rolled onto her back. "Sammy?"

"I'm right here." Sam groaned and his hand found hers. "Careful." He warned her and helped her sit up. Their eyes adjusted and Riley looked down.

"Oh, God." She moaned. They were sitting in a pile of dried up human bones. Ben's eyes opened and he saw skulls. He cried out in shock and backed up, bumping into Riley and Sam who had just stood up.

"It's ok. It's ok. It's ok." Sam whispered quickly, comforting the teen. Riley felt something trickling down her leg and she looked to see blood coming from a cut above her knee cap.

"Riles?" Sam murmured. "You okay?"

"Y-yeah." She stated and ripped part of her tank top to wrap around her leg. "See? All better." Sam rolled his eyes but didn't say anything. Suddenly she gasped.

"Sam!" Riley murmured and hobbled over to where two figures were hanging from the supporting beams above them. Ben went to his sister and tried to wake her up, while Sam and Riley went to Dean.

"Dean." Riley murmured, shaking him gently. He groaned and turned, his face smeared with blood.

"Dean?" Sam urged. His eyes opened and Riley sighed with relief. Sam smiled too.

"Hey, you ok?" He asked worriedly. Dean blinked dizzily and winced, but he nodded.

"Yeah." He grunted.

"Here, Sam you catch him." Riley murmured and standing up on her tiptoes and slightly pressed against Dean's chest she started cutting at his bonds with her pocketknife. Dean chuckled a bit and Riley rolled her eyes.

"Don't get any ideas." She murmured, half-wondering how he could be cracking jokes at a time like this. Then again, it was Dean.

"What? You have to admit it's a little kinky."

"I don't even think I want to know how you have fun with that." Riley muttered and Dean gave her a heated grin.

"You would."

"Shut up." She told him and stepped back as the rope was cut.

"Gotcha." Sam murmured as he lowered his brother down.

"Haley, wake up." Ben spoke to his sister and Riley went over to cut her loose. Sam moved Dean over to a clear spot on the floor and settled him down. Dean groaned and his breathing quickened slightly from the move.

"I thought you had died." Sam murmured and Dean looked at him with a groan of pain.

"You sure you're all right?" Sam asked with worry.

"Yeah, yep." Dean answered in a grunt of agony. "Where is he?"

"It's gone for now." Sam said, helping Haley sit down beside Dean who noticed Riley's reddened cloth around her leg.

"What happened?" He asked with a frown. _And don't you dare say nothing._

"Oh. It's nothing." She murmured and Dean sighed heavily.

_Of course she said that. _

Haley rubbed her wrists, tossing the rope aside while Ben looked over her worriedly. Haley suddenly looked around the room and gasped. She stood up quickly and Ben looked over to see what she had spotted. Riley, Sam, and Dean soon saw what had her gasping. A young man was hanging from the rafters a few feet away from them. Dean stayed put, still frowning at Riley, while Sam went over to see who he was.

"Tommy?" Haley murmured as she reached out to touch her brother's cheek. Suddenly Tommy's head jerked up and he gasped for air, looking alarmed. Haley shrieked once. Dean saw Riley jump at the noise and snickered at her. She glared at him over her shoulder.

"Cut him down!" Haley begged and Sam went to work on getting the rope cut. Haley and Ben moved forward to support their brother.

"We're gonna get you home." Haley promised the weary young man and Riley smiled at the reunited family before turning to dig through their stolen packs that were in the corner.

"Um…that was clever what you did with the candy…" Riley said awkwardly and Dean paused in his search to look and see if she was teasing him. She wasn't looking at him.

"Yeah I figured that you'd guys see that." He said just as awkwardly before reaching into a pack and pulling out two flares guns. He smirked at Riley who smiled back as he got to his feet.

"Check it out." He called to Sam who turned to look at him.

"Flare guns." Sam said with a grin. "Those'll work." Dean grinned and twirled the guns on his fingers like a cowboy.

* * *

Everyone moved down the tunnel. Dean lead the way with Sam following him, one of the flare guns in hand. Haley and Ben followed after, carrying Tommy between them as the man limped along. Riley kept behind them, hiding her wince that happened with each step.

Growling echoed down the tunnel and everyone stopped walking.

"Looks like someone's home for supper." Dean said, taking a step forward and Riley scowled.

"Don't say that." She stated and when he looked at her she folded her arms. "You might scare someone." He snorted and turned back around and stepping slightly in front of the blond. She'd never admit it, but she was glad he did.

"We'll never outrun it," Haley said nervously. Dean looked back and exchanged looks with Sam who had one of the flare guns pointed in the direction the sound had come from.

"You thinking what I'm thinking?" Dean wondered and Sam nodded. Riley knew from experience that when they got that look in their eyes, they had a plan.

"Yeah, I think so." Sam answered aloud and Riley smiled slightly. Sam may have been out of the game for a while, but he still knew what he was doing.

"All right, listen to me." Dean told the others. "Stay with Sam and Riley. They'll get you out of here."

"Be careful." Riley told Dean before she realized what she said. When he arched an eyebrow she quickly smirked and patted his shoulder. "You don't want to end up shooting yourself." He rolled his eyed and went down the tunnel.

"What is he gonna do?" Haley asked and Riley looked at the girl.

"Something he probably shouldn't, but don't worry his wild plans usually work."

"Chow time, you freaky bastard!" Dean shouted and Riley gave Haley a look that said 'told you so'. "Yeah, that's right, bring it on, baby, I taste _good!" _Dean kept moving until he was completely out of sight, disappearing around a corner and into the dark with a gesture for them to get going. Riley went up the tunnel first and then nodded at Sam.

"All right, come on! Hurry!" He and started leading them down the tunnel. Riley brought up the rear, in case she needed to help Tommy and his siblings. It was slow going with an injured young man to tug along, but it wasn't from lack of trying. Tommy's muscles had withered slightly from nonuse and he had difficulty moving along. He was tiring quickly and Riley bit her lip.

Wendigo growls came from in front of them and Sam lifted the flare gun. Riley knew that he was debating what to do next.

"Get them out of here, Riles." He said lowly and she sighed with a nod of her head. There was no use arguing.

"Sam, no!" Haley murmured.

"I'll get them out, you just shoot the damn thing." Riley told him and Sam nodded. The growling grew louder and Riley turned around.

"We have to go now!" She stated and they started down a new tunnel. A loud roar sounded behind them and Riley turned her head.

"Sam!" She cried when she heard the tell-tale sound of a flare gun shooting off. Seconds later, he came barreling up from down the tunnel and he took hold of Tommy to try and help them along.

"Come on, hurry, hurry, hurry." Sam yelled and they raced/hobbled up the tunnel.

"Oh, God." Riley stated when her hands came in contact with a wall. "Dead End." She turned around and Sam stiffened.

"Get behind me!" He shouted, holding out his arms to block and shield the siblings and Riley. The girl clung to Sam's jacket and moved to his side. He glanced at her.

"You're not going to face that thing alone." She said and he only nodded. The Wendigo approached slowly, its large limbs shifting in the dark. It came into the light, showing that it was tall and gangly with long claws. It gave a loud roar that made Riley and Haley scream out.

"Hey!" A familiar voice yelled. The Wendigo whipped around to face Dean. The flare gun went off and the creature began to light up under its skin and burn. With shrieks of pain it fell to the floor in flames.

"Not bad, huh?" Dean asked and Riley smiled.

"Nice, shootin' Tex." She told him and he laughed. Sam shook his head and Haley smiled at Dean.

* * *

"So the bear came back again after you yelled at it?" The officer asked and Ben nodded, sticking to the story that Sam helped he come up with. They were outside the Ranger Station talking with some police officers, while an ambulance tended to Tommy and to Dean, Haley, and Riley's minor injuries.

"That's when it circled the campsite." Ben told them while Sam stood behind him."I mean, this grizzly must have weight eight hundred, nine hundred pounds!" The officer nodded at him.

"All right, we'll go after it first thing." He promised and walked off. Sam smiled at Ben and then looked over at where Riley was sitting on a bench and they walked over.

"How's your leg?" Sam asked her.

"Just a scratch. That's all." She told him with a smile. "Nothing to worry about."

Dean and Haley walked towards the group.

"So really, I don't know how to thank you." She started. Dean gave her an enticing look.

"Must you cheapen the moment?" She asked with a slight laugh.

"Yeah." He told her with a laugh of his own.

"Are you riding with your brother?" A lady asked from the ambulance and Haley looked at her.

"Yeah." She told her and then looked back at Dean. Riley, Sam, and Ben were on their way.

"You should take care of her." She said to Dean and he gave a confused look. She nodded at Riley and Dean followed his gaze.

"Riley?"

"Come on, I've seen the way you look at her." Haley smiled. "You care for her."

"I don't….I mean she's not…What?" He feigned confusion and Haley shook her head.

"Don't wait too long to tell her the truth, she might not wait." Haley walked off and leaving Dean to mull over what she had said.

"Take care, Haley." Riley murmured, hugging the girl goodbye and Haley hugged her back.

"He likes you, you know." The girl whispered in her ear and Riley frowned.

"What?"

"Haven't you noticed? He looks at you in that certain way."

"Dean likes to flirt." Riley shook her head, oblivious to what Haley was talking about. "He always looks that way." Haley sighed.

"Oh, he doesn't openly show it." She tried to explain. "I can tell that he's one of those guys that don't let his emotions get in the way of what you all do, fighting monsters and things like that. But trust me. He's been looking at you in a completely different way. And you have been looking at him too."

"Me?" Riley looked afraid suddenly and she bit her lip. "I…I guess that's because we've known each other for so long," Riley added quickly, but Haley shook her head. "Look, I know you like, Dean." She told her with a smile. "You don't have to worry about me. We're not together. We may fight like an old married couple." She laughed, but it was strained and her eyes gave her away. Haley could tell that something about the conversation was upsetting the girl. "I've been told that before, but yeah, we're not like that." Haley watched Riley walk off and frowned in concern after her.

"Let's go." She murmured to Ben and then turned to Dean. She kissed him on the cheek and pulled back slowly. "I hope you find your father." Dean nodded at her with a small smile and Haley tucked an arm around Ben, leading him to the ambulance. "Thanks, Sam." She said as she passed by and Riley came up to Sam's side.

They watched until the doors of the ambulance were shut.

"Man, I hate camping." Dean muttered and Riley sighed.

"Me too." She and Sam said at the same time and Dean snorted.

"How are you feeling?" Riley asked him and Dean nodded at her.

"I'll be all right." He murmured and then looked at Sam. "Sam, you know we're gonna find Dad, right?"

"Yeah, I know." Sam said, nodding, looking back at me with a grin. "But in the meantime…" He paused and winked at Riley. "I'm driving!" Riley laughed and Dean saw that both of them were watching him. He tossed the keys to Sam after a minute and then looked at Riley. He suddenly wondered if maybe Haley had been right… Quickly he shook it off.

"You get shot gun." He told her and Riley looked at him in disbelief.

"You sure?" She asked, and Dean nodded.

"Yeah." Riley smiled at him and he felt his stomach flip-flop. _What the hell? Must be getting sick. _He put a hand to his head with a groan and Riley touched his arm. Dean jumped and looked at her.

"Are you all right?" She asked, her sky blue eyes searching his face.

"Just need some shut eye." He told her and climbed into the back seat. Riley shrugged at Sam and they both got into the Impala.

"Does this mean I get to pick the music?" Sam asked with cheeky grin. "House rules."

"Fine." Dean stated. "But I swear man, you put in anything that's girly…You're not ever driving this car." Sam and Riley laughed and Dean frowned. "I'm not kidding."

"Sure, Dean." Sam teased. "Sure."

* * *

_Review?_


	3. Dead in the Water

Chapter 3: Dead in the Water

Dean scribbled out words on the newspapers in front of him. Sam had gone to pay for their room, while Riley was somewhere that Dean wasn't sure of, but never pressed when it came to her needing time alone. They were in the diner part of the inn they were staying at, and Dean was scooping out potential hunts. He needed to find a job to do and fast. His mind had been wondering ever since Haley had told him about how he had been looking at Riley and lately that's _all_ he had been doing; watching her, every few seconds, really looking her like he was seeing for the first time.

He took notice of things that he hadn't really cared about before. For instance, she had the bluest eyes he had ever seen, she wore a leather necklace that was always tucked down into the shirts she wore and he knew he had never seen what was on the end of it, she had the tendency to hum and/or sing random songs at the most unusual times (Something he found quirky, but not annoying), the way she smelled like strawberries with hints of vanilla, and a great many other things that he was still finding out. Dean frowned to himself, tapping at his lower lip with the ink pen. There he went again, thinking about her. He seriously needed to stop, it was freaking him out. He had had many girls before, so why was he dwelling on this one?

"Can I get you anything else?" A voice asked and Dean looked up, pen in his mouth from the deep contemplation, and focused on the blond standing at the table. Wendy the waitress was half leaning towards him, her assets about to burst from her tight pink tank top. Dean felt the small grin on his face widen as she flaunted herself at him. At that time, Sam slid back into the booth, glancing at the waitress.

"Just the check please." He toned with a sigh.

"Okay." She nodded before walking away and Dean rolled his eyes at his brother.

"You know, Sam, we are allowed to have fun once and a while." He gestured slightly at the waitress who was sashaying away from them and back into the diner's kitchen. "That is fun." When Sam didn't respond he frowned and looked around. "Where's Blondie?"

"Outside." Sam murmured. "She's by the car."

"She doesn't want to finish eating?" Dean asked, curious and a wee bit concerned. "She's never skipped out on food before." Sam shrugged. Noting that his brother seemed to be in a grumpy mood, Dean handed him some papers instead, where he had marked the story that interested him.

"Here. Take a look at this. I think I got one." Sam took the paper and held it up to read it. "Lake Manitoc, Wisconsin. Last week, Sophie Carlton, eighteen, walks into the lake, doesn't walk out." Dean read from memory and Sam glanced at him. "Authorities dragged the water." He continued. "Nothing. Sophie Carlton was the third Lake Manitoc drowning this year. None of the other bodies were found either. They had Sophie's funeral two days ago"

"A funeral?" Sam asked in confusion.

"Yeah. It's weird, they buried an empty coffin." Dean agreed and then shrugged. "For, uh, closure or whatever."

"Closure?" Sam scoffed. "What closure? People don't just disappear Dean. Other people just stop looking for 'em." Dean wasn't sure he liked what Sam was driving at and set his paper back down with a slight frown.

"Something you want to say to me?"

"Trail for Dad." Sam sighed. "It's getting colder every day."

"Exactly. So what are we supposed to do?"

"I don't know. Something. Anything." Sam sounded desperate and Dean felt as something snapped within him. _Did he think I wasn't looking? That I wasn't frustrated too? _

"You know what? I'm sick of this attitude." He stated angrily. "Between your attitude and Blondie's depression, I'm starting to get pissed." He narrowed his eyes at Sam. "I want to find Dad just as much as you do."

"Yeah, I know you do-"

"I've been with him every single day for the past two years. While you've been at college, going to pep rallies. We will find Dad. But until then, we're going to kill everything bad between here and there." Dean said sternly. "And no amount of depression or attitude is going to change my mind. Okay?" They stared at one another feathers ruffled like a pair of roosters, but finally Sam backed down. Dean's eyes wandered back to Wendy when she walked by and Sam rolled his eyes watching how Dean practically ogled the girl's ass.

"All right. Lake Manitoc." He agreed, before clearing his throat. "Hey."

"Huh?" Dean looked at him, broken out of his trance.

"How far?"

"Few miles." Dean murmured. "Let's go."

* * *

Riley leaned against the top of the Impala, her long blond hair like a halo around her head as she leaned on one elbow.

"I know…" She murmured into the receiver of her beat up cell. "I…I just need more time." The voice on the other end seemed to spoke up louder with concern and obvious protest. "Please, Daddy, let me handle this my way." Riley waited a moment. "No, it's okay...I'm…with some friends… Who? Oh…err, the Winchester brothers." She waited and winced when the male voice shouted. "Yes both of them, Daddy." The voice calmed down and she smiled. "I will. I love you too. Yes, I will make sure that he stays away." She rolled her eyes.

The conversation took on something else then and she felt her heart clench. Tears stung her eyes. "…No. And I don't plan too. It's too soon." Riley turned her head to see Sam and Dean coming out of the diner. She quickly wiped her eyes. "Look, Daddy, I have to go. We're hitting the road again. Yes, I promise to talk to you soon. I love you, bye." She shut her phone and thrust it back into her jean pocket before standing upright.

"Everything okay?" Sam asked in concern, while Dean pretended to examine his car for any signs of disturbance that Riley might have done to it.

"Yeah, just great." Riley murmured, not trusting herself to meet his eyes. She focused on Dean who was running a hand over his car. "Oh for God's sakes man, I didn't dent your car!"

"Good!" Dean shot back, his temper still hot after his confrontation with Sam. "Then get in the car. We've got a new job." Riley rolled her eyes and walked over to Sam's side to into the backseat. Sam gave her an apologetic smile, letting her know it was his fault that Dean now in a foul mood. Riley only patted him, silently telling him it was okay. Dean got in and started the car. Without another word he pulled out of the parking lot and Riley leaned forward, so that she was close to Sam.

"So, what's the job?" She asked and Sam filled her in.

* * *

Dean pulled up to the Carlton's residence and cut the engine. Turning his head, he examined his two companions. Sam looked wary, but alert and ready for the job while Riley looked slightly disturbed, her eyes unseeing. She had been silent ever since Sammy had filled her in to the job. Dean frowned at her.

"Blondie?" He questioned and Sam turned his head to look at her too. Riley came out of her own little world with a start and blinked at him.

"Huh?"

"You ready?"

"Oh, uh, yeah." She said her cheeks pinking slightly from being caught unfocused. Dean's eyes narrowed at her for clearly he didn't believe her, while Sam's eyes searched her face.

"Riley, you don't have to be afraid-" He began and she suddenly jolted.

"I'm not afraid." Riley said quickly, a fire in her eyes that challenged them to say otherwise. Dean smirked at Sam who only frowned at him. This girl could fight with the best of them.

"Well, okay then. Let's go." He stated, opening the door and sliding out from behind the wheel. Sam sighed and waited a moment glancing at Riley. She sighed heavily.

"Sam, I'm fine okay? Let's just solve this thing." She told him, but Sam shook his head at her. He got out of the car to let out and she avoided the helping hand he held out to her. _She's just as stubborn as Dean is_, he though. If only they could see that…

The three of them walked up the steps to the house and Dean knocked on the door. A young man answered, looking at the three of them warily. Riley was glad that she had gone with a dressier shirt than the t-shirt she had picked out earlier. It was better to look professional than not.

"Will Carlton?" Dean asked automatically.

"Yeah, that's right." The man nodded. He looked tired and sad, and Riley sighed internally. That was the thing about the job, sometimes people died in order for the monster to be stopped.

"I'm agent Ford and these are agents Hamill and Fisher." Dean introduced as he pointed at Sam and Riley, respectively. Sam almost grinned at the innuendo of _Star Wars_ actors, and he heard Riley giggle softly.

"Hey, brother." She whispered to him and he had to grin that time. Dean cleared his throat and sent them looks. _Be professional guys, _his eyes read and they hid more smiles.

"We're with the U.S. Wildlife Service." Dean showed Will Carlton his badge and the young man read the badge.

"We just need to ask you some questions about your sister." Riley murmured and Will nodded. "Can you tell us what happened?"

* * *

Will told them his story and then Sam asked if he could see led them down to the edge of the lake and show them where it had occurred. Silently, they followed. Dean glanced around at his surroundings and spotted a man sitting on a bench that was settled on the family's large dock. Even from where he was standing, Dean could tell that this man was upset. Sam saw the man sitting there too, but another movement had him peering over to his right.

Riley was staring off at the lake her arms crossed over her chest protectively. Her eyes never moved from the water and Sam made the quick connection. Silently he reached for her and patted her arm. When she turned from the water, Sam smiled faintly.

"You okay?" He said quietly and she nodded.

"It's stupid, I know…" She stated, glancing at the water once again before looking at Sam. "I mean we're around water all the time…"

"No, it's not stupid." Sam said gently, his brotherly protectiveness coming in again. "We all have things we're afraid of."

Dean snorted, having caught the conversation. "Not me." When Sam gave him a disbelieving look, Dean frowned. "I'm serious." Riley never looked at him.

"Yeah, okay." Sam stated and Dean rolled his eyes, but his stance softened a bit at seeing how Riley was holding herself stiffly. He always had a soft spot for her. Dean made himself look away from her. _She's fine. No worries. _

"She was about 100 yards out." Will told them, bringing them back to the task at hand. "That's where she got dragged down."

"And you're sure she didn't just drown." Dean stated, just making sure, and Will nodded.

"Yeah. She was a Varsity swimmer. She practically grew up in that lake. She was as safe out there as in her own bathtub."

"So, no splashing?" Sam questioned. "No signs of distress?"

"No, that's what I'm telling you."

"Did you see any shadows in the water?" Sam continued. "Maybe some dark shape breech the surface?" Riley shuddered and looked back at the lake. Was something out there?

"No, again, she was really far out there." Will murmured.

"You ever see strange tracks by the shoreline?"

"No, never. Why? Why? Do you think something's out there?" He sounded panicked.

"I'm sure there's nothing, but…um fish." Riley stated lamely and Dean gave her a look. _Oops. Damn it. Not focused! Dean is going to kill me! _Will didn't seem to notice the odd sentence, but she wanted to be sure and quickly spoke again. "We'll let you know as soon as we do." She offered and Will nodded his thanks. She was glad when Dean turned to walk back towards the house and she followed him gratefully.

"What about your father?" Sam asked, making them stop and look at him. "Can we talk to him?"

"Look, if you don't mind—I mean, he didn't see anything. And he's kinda been through a lot."

"We understand." Riley spoke up softly and they headed back to the car.

"What the hell was that? Fish?" Dean scoffed and she chewed her lower lip.

"Look, I screwed up okay? Let's not make a big deal out of it."

"I knew you didn't like water, but geez this takes the cake Blondie." Insecure, Riley did the only thing that she could. Be defensive.

"I almost drowned in a lake you ass!" She snapped at him, unshed tears springing up, and Dean and Sam both looked taken aback by her anger. "If Bobby hadn't pulled me out, I would have-" She exhaled nosily from her mouth and opened the car door. She got in the back and turned her head so she didn't have to look at them. "Can we just drop it? I'll watch what I say from now on." Sam could see that she was only being defensive because of her nerves and he suddenly remember her acting like that before she started being trained as a hunter. But why be so defensive now?

"Sure." He said gently, casting a look at Dean who was still staring at the blond and elbowed him. Dean grunted.

"Yeah, okay." He conceded and Riley looked over at him sharply.

"Oh, God. Now you're going to think I can't handle this aren't you? I knew what we were going be doing when we took this job. I can handle it."

"I never said you couldn't, Blondie." Dean said evenly. _What the hell?_

"I can handle it." She repeated and Sam nodded.

"I know." He told her and nothing else was said as they drove to the police station.

* * *

"Now, I'm sorry, but why does the Wildlife Service care about an accidental drowning?" Sheriff Devins asked as he led them all back to his office. They had come in badges waving and the Sheriff looked less inclined to really speak to them.

"Are you sure it's accidental?" Sam asked him with a frown.

"Will Carlton saw something grab his sister." Riley added. Devins glanced at her as he went to sit at his desk.

"Like what?" He gestured to the chairs in front of the desk. "You know what? Here, sit, please." They did with Riley sitting between the brothers.

"There are no indigenous carnivores in that lake," The sheriff said, looking over at each of them as he examined them from behind his desk. He remained standing, his arms gesturing as he spoke. "There's nothing even big enough to pull down a person, unless it was the Loch Ness Monster."

"Yeah," Dean chuckled after exchanging a look with his two companions. "Right."

"Will Carlton was traumatized, and sometimes the mind plays tricks. Still," Devins finally sat down and leaned his elbows on his desk as his voice took on a different tone, one of utter disbelief that the drowning hadn't been accidental. "We dragged that entire lake. We even ran a sonar sweep, just to be sure, and there was _nothing _down there."

"That's weird though." Dean began.

"That's the third missing body this year." Riley pointed out to him and finishing Dean's sentence.

"I know," Devins said with a firm nod. "These are people from my town. These are people I care about."

"I know," Dean remarked with a small nod of his own. Devins tossed his hands in the air in an 'I don't know what else to do' gesture.

"Anyway…All this... it won't be a problem much longer."

"What do you mean?" Dean asked with a curious frown. Devins looked at them incredulously like they were forgetting something. Dean slightly panicked.

"It needs repairs." Riley spoke up with a nod. "It's falling apart."

"Right." Devins nodded and Dean relaxed. He gave her hand a squeeze, thanking her silently for the searching for information that saved his ass, and she tried not to jump at the contact, glancing at his with wide eyes. "And the feds won't give us a grant to repair it, so they've opened the spillway. In another six months, there won't be much of a lake. There won't be much of a town, either. But as Federal Wildlife, you already knew that of course."

"Of course," Riley agreed. "We make it our priority to know for the good of the wilderness." She gave him a smile that couldn't be turned down by anyone and if Dean had to describe it he would say it was dazzling. Kind of like the smile that girls give when they really want something from you, but are playing hard to get.

"Exactly," Dean agreed with enthusiasm. Sam rolled his eyes slightly. A knock at the door had them turning their heads to see a pretty brunette peering around the door as she opened it. She looked startled to see them sitting there.

"Sorry, am I interrupting?" She asked with a slightly nervous smile. "I can come back later." They stood up as she entered fully and Devins gave the young woman a smile.

"Agents, this is my daughter." Devins said. Dean held out his hand for her to shake first.

"Pleasure to meet you. I'm Dean," He told her as she took his offered hand and shook it.

"Andrea Barr. Hi," She flashed him a smile not really even glancing at Sam or Riley.

"They're from the Wildlife Service. About the lake," Devins informed her and Andrea nodded.

"Oh," She said quietly and glanced down as a little boy appeared from behind her looking withdrawn.

"Oh, hey there." Dean greeted the boy warmly. "What's your name?" The boy didn't answer him and walked back into the main part of the station. Andrea gave them all an apologetic smile and followed him.

"His name is Lucas," Devins told as they watched Andrea give Lucas a box of crayons to play with while he sat at an unoccupied table.

"Is he okay?" Riley asked, looking back at the sheriff.

"My grandson's been through a lot." Devins murmured. "We all have." He went to the door of his office and indicated that the interview was over.

"Well, if there's anything else I can do for you, please let me know." He said as they passed by to get out the door.

"Thank you." Riley told him and he smiled at her.

"Hey, you know now that you mention it, could you point us in the direction of a reasonably priced motel?"

"Lakefront motel." Andrea spoke up with a smile. "Go around the corner, its two blocks up." Dean got a look on his face like he was clueless and Riley sighed internally. _Another pickup attempt? Really?_

"Two-" Dean began. "Would you mind showing us?" Andrea giggled at him.

"You want me to walk you two blocks?" She asked with a smile.

"Not if it's any trouble," Dean said, trying not to seem disappointed.

"I'm headed that way anyway," She said with a smile and then turned to her father. "I'll be back to pick up Lucas at three." He nodded and she went to hug her son. "We're going to the park, okay sweetie?" The boy didn't respond to what she was saying, but somehow Riley knew that he was listening to her.

"Thanks again," Sam said to Devins with a wave of his hand and he and Riley took up the rear as they followed Dean and Andrea out of the police station.

"So... cute kid," Dean said, walking up beside Andrea.

"Thanks," Andrea told him with a smile as they crossed the street. "Kids are the best, huh?" he continued and Riley snickered into Sam's arm. Dean gave them dirty looks for making fun of him before he turned back to face Andrea. They came to a stop and Andrea gestured at the building.

"There it is. Like I said, two blocks." She commented with a smile at the three of them.

"Thank you. We might have gotten lost." Riley told her with a hidden smile. "Dean often gets us lost. It's a wonder how he's even functional." Dean rolled his eyes and then smirked. _Is that how she wanted to play it huh?_

"Yes, it must be hard with your sense of direction." Andrea beamed at Dean coyly. "Never being able to find your way to a decent pick up line." Dean's mouth opened and Riley suppressed giggles as Andrea waved a hand to him. "Enjoy your stay!" She told them all and left quickly. As soon as she was gone, Riley laughed loudly and Dean rolled his eyes.

"Kids are the best?" Sam questioned. "You don't even like kids."

"I love kids!" Dean protested and Riley arched an eyebrow. Sam rolled his eyes.

"Name three children that you even know." He challenged and Dean opened and closed his mouth. Riley snorted.

"I'm thinking!" Dean pouted at her and she shook her head.

"Come on." She laughed and Dean smiled at her back when she walked away. _That laugh…._ Dean caught himself in time and shook his head. _God what is wrong with me?! _

They set up in the motel room and Riley claimed her bed by the bathroom by dumping her bag on the bed. Sam grinned at her and then Dean eyed the couch trying to decide if he wanted to bunk with his brother or not. Riley headed for the bathroom with some of her items.

Dean heard her humming and tried to figure out what she was humming. Sam got out his computer and began typing on it, looking for information that would help them with this job. Dean flopped down on the couch as Riley come out of the bathroom.

"Okay," She stated and waited until both of them were looking at her. "I am going to wash some clothes. Is anyone else interested in having their clothes washed?" A few minutes later, her arms were weighed down with clothes. "Okay, I'll be back." She said cheerfully and Sam gave her a smile, opening the door for her.

"Thanks, Riles."

"No, problem Sam."

* * *

Once she was gone, Sam looked at his brother. "Have you noticed that she's been acting weird?"

"You mean more jumpy? Spending more and more time alone?" Dean paused for a moment."Yeah."

"No, not that. The water thing is a concern, but that's not what I was talking about."

"Then what?" Dean asked, sounding disinterested and Sam rolled his eyes.

"Um, how about the frequent nightmares? The tossing and turning at night? You haven't noticed any of that?"

"Sammy, all I hear is you muttering and snoring. Besides, you are the one that hogs the bed twisting and turning all the time." Dean pointed out and then narrowed his eyes at his brother wickedly. "You've been watching her sleep? You are such a pervert."

"Shut up." Sam snorted, his face getting a little red. "It's not like that. She's like my sister."

"Yeah, okay." Dean chuckled and Sam went back to typing. Dean hoped that was the end of the conversation. Unfortunately, Sam wasn't done.

"I'm just saying I think something's up."

"She acts okay to me. Just your typical girly hunter with a few friggin' water issues."

"But that's just it." Sam retorted, thinking back to what she had said to him a few nights ago when they had talked to the survivor of the Wendigo attack. "I mean….We barely got to know her when we were kids. I didn't even know she was afraid of drowning. She actually stayed in one school thanks to Bobby, so when we did see her-"

"So what? You want us to sit down and talk about ourselves? Who are you? Dr. Phil?"

"Never mind, man." Sam muttered and then clicked on his laptop. Apparently Dean didn't want to talk about Riley. "So there's the three victims this year." He read off.

"And before that?"

Sam glared at the screen. "Uh, yeah, six more spread out over the past thirty five years. Those bodies were never recovered either. If there's something out there it's picking up its pace."

"So what do we have, a lake monster on a binge?"

"This whole lake monster theory it-it just bugs me."

"Why?" Dean questioned, coming to peer over his brother's shoulder.

"Loch Ness, uh, Lake Champlain. There are literally hundreds of eye witness accounts, but here nothing. Whatever is out there, no one is living to talk about it." Dean's eyes searched the list of victims and then paused at one.

"Wait. "Barr." Christopher Barr. Where have I heard that name before?"

"Christopher Barr," Sam began, reading from small description before clicking on it. "Was the victim in May. Oh." Sam paused before starting again. "Christopher Barr was Andrea's husband, Lucas' father. Apparently he took Lucas out swimming, and Lucas was on a floating wooden platform when Chris drowned. Two hours before the kid got rescued." Dean rubbed the back of his head, thinking back to what the sheriff had said about being through a lot.

"Maybe we have an eye witness after all." Sam said and Dean nodded

"No wonder the kid is so freaked out," Dean said, pensively. He could relate to how that kid felt. "Watching one of your parents die isn't something you just get over." Sam looked at his brother, sadness in his eyes.

* * *

When Riley returned they filled her in on what was going on and then all three of them headed for the park. They found Andrea sitting on a park bench, keeping an eye on her son.

"Can we join you?" Sam asked and Andrea looked at them.

"I'm here with my son." Dean glanced over in the park of children and found Lucas kneeing in front of a bench, paper, crayons, and Army men setup around him. Riley glanced at the little boy, wondering what he was thinking.

"Oh." Dean smiled at the kid and then looked back at Andrea. "Mind if I say hi?" He walked towards Lucas without waiting for an answer and Sam nudged Riley forward.

"Go on." Sam encouraged, seeing how she wanted to go and talk to the little boy. She hesitated for a moment before following Dean and Sam smiled after her.

"Tell your friend this whole _Jerry Maguire_ thing is not going to work on me." Andrea said with a smile and Sam sat down beside her.

"I don't think that's what this is about." He murmured back to her and she looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

* * *

Dean and Riley approached Lucas and Dean crouched down beside him as Riley looked on.

"Hey there." Dean greeted at the little boy who ignored the both of them. He settled down with a small nervous chuckle at the bench and Riley smiled. Dean tried to ignore Riley watching him and looked at what Lucas had in front of him. "Ah, I used to love these things." He commented and picked up one of the army men. Making some gunfire noises and explosions, Dean made the arm man fly through the air and smack the bench. Riley hid a wide smile. _How could he not like kids? He's practically a kid himself! _

When Lucas didn't react, Dean eyed the crayons. "So crayons is more your thing?" He nodded and glanced at Riley with a wink. "That's cool. Chicks dig artists." She shook her head at him with a smirk and he glanced at some of Lucas' drawings.

"Hey, these are pretty good. You mind if I sit and draw with you for a while?" He asked and then grinned slyly. "You know, Riley used to be an artist once." He continued and she gave him an incredulous look. "I bet we could convince her to draw something with us." Riley walked over and took some paper and few crayons, giving Dean a shake of her head in amusement.

"I'm not so bad myself." He said with a laugh and Riley raised an eyebrow at him. "What?" She only laughed and began to draw.

"You know," Riley murmured to Lucas as she drew. "I think you can hear us, but you just don't want to talk."

"Yeah, and we don't know what exactly happened to your dad, but we know it was something real bad." Dean told Lucas. "I think I know how you feel. When I was your age, I saw something." Riley bit her lip at the tone Dean was using. He didn't show this side of him often and she wondered if she should even be listening. He was hesitant and struggled to speak and Riley felt her eyes tear up. She didn't dare look at him. "Anyway….Or maybe you don't think anyone will-will listen to you or uh, believe you, but I want you to know that I will. You don't even have to say anything. You could draw me a picture about what you saw that day with your dad on the lake." Lucas remained uninterested.

"That's okay." Riley told Lucas gently and Dean watched her face as she spoke to Lucas. She was different talking to him and Dean wondered what it would be like if she had kids of her own. "You don't have to say anything." Dean looked at his drawing and then showed it to Lucas.

"This is for you." He told him. "This is my family. That's my dad, and that's…That's my mom. That's my geek brother. And that's me." Riley peeked at his stick people drawing and Dean rolled his eyes when she smiled. "All right, so I'm a sucky artist. What'd you draw?"

"Here you go, Lucas." Riley slid the paper on the bench next to him with a sad smile. "This is my daddy." Dean's eyes widened a fraction at the likeness of Bobby. "He's the best dad in the world." She spoke quietly. "He's my adopted father, but I love him all the same. I never knew my real father. He's gone like my real mother." Riley bit her bottom lip. "I know what it's like to have someone taken away from you, Lucas. It'll get better I promise." She smiled and got up. Dean did too, trying not to look at Riley.

"We'll see you around Lucas." Dean murmured and he and Riley headed back for Sam.

As they walked they heard Andrea remark: "Lucas hasn't said a word. Not even to me. Not since his dad's accident."

"We heard. We're so sorry."

"What do the doctors say?" Sam asked and Andrea sighed.

"Oh, that it's a kind of post-traumatic stress."

"That can't be easy for either of you." Sam murmured.

"We moved in with my dad. He helps out a lot." She paused a moment and then glanced over at Lucas. "It's just…when I think about what Lucas had gone through what he saw…"

"He won't be like that forever." Riley murmured and Andrea looked at her. "He just needs more time."

"Kids are strong." Dean spoke up. "You'd be surprised what they can deal with."

Andrea sighed. "You know, he used to have such life. He was hard to keep up with, to tell you the truth. Now he just sits there, drawing those pictures, playing with those Army men. I just wish…."She trailed off when Lucas appeared at her side, looking away from everyone else. His hand held two pieces of paper. "Hey sweetie." Andrea murmured. Without a word Lucas handed Dean one of the papers and then he handed on to Riley. Both times his face was averted, only his hand in their direction let them know that he knew they were there.

"Thanks." Dean smiled, surprised. "Thanks, Lucas."

"Yes, thank you. It's beautiful." Riley told the little boy and he turned and walked away. Andrea gave them bewildered expressions.

"How did you get him to do that?"

"Maybe he just found something in common with us." Dean said and glanced at Riley whose eyes were sparkling with emotion.

When they headed back to the hotel room for the night, Sam walked beside Riley as Dean went ahead to unlock the door to the motel room. "What did he draw you?" She showed him the picture. It was a picture of an angel, sitting on a cloud. A blond haired angel.

"He really was paying attention, Sam." Riley murmured her eyes glistening again. "He knew we were there." Sam smiled. It made Riley feel good to know that they made a difference.

* * *

_"Daddy! No!" The six-year-old laughed as he rocked the boat. Bobby smiled at her warmly and then pressed a finger to his lips._

_"Shh. You'll scare the fish." Riley giggled and settled down in the boat like she was supposed to, looking more like a skinny girl with her oversized life jacket on. She had learned that in order to catch a fish she had to be quiet and sit real still. Twelve year old, Dean Winchester hadn't thought she could do it, but she was going to prove him wrong! _

_"Here, Princess." Bobby offered her a small fishing pole that was a deep blue. Riley's eyes lit up happily and she took the rod from him eagerly. Bobby smiled at her and then held up a can. Riley knew what was in there for she had seen Bobby collect them. He opened the can and waited for the squealing protest. Instead, Riley was looking thoughtfully at the worms, her eyes sweeping over each to find one she liked the best. _

_"How about that one?" She asked poking one with her finger and Bobby leaned forward to see. "It's small, but very wiggly."_

_"Just like you." Her daddy teased and tickled her. Riley giggled. _

_"I'm not a worm, daddy!"_

_"Well, you sure are wiggly. My little Wriggly Riley." He chuckled and she shushed him. _

_"You'll scare the fish."_

_"Oops." He winked at her and then showed her how to properly hook the worm without getting poked. Once the worm was on, Riley couldn't wait to get to fishing. Bobby settled her safely in her seat and after she got the hang of tossing her line, he settled back down to resume his own fishing. _

_A little while later, Riley felt something tug at her line. Excited, she started to reel it in. _

_"Daddy." She said when it became too hard for her to pull in. She looked over to see that Bobby was snoozing lightly, his head on his chest. Riley abandoned her fishing rod and went to poke at Bobby. "Daddy?" A scrapping noise caught her attention and she turned to see her fishing rod moving along the edge of the boat. "Oh, no!" She squealed and ran over to get it. Riley gasped as the line lurched forward and she reached as far as she could to get it. Before she knew what was happening, she was falling, falling towards the glistening surface below with a cry. Bubbles were all she saw at first and then she began to panic as her life jacket slipped off. She couldn't swim! _

_"Daddy!" She wailed when her head popped up briefly, flailing. The water rushed over her head again as she sunk down under. Coming up sputtering, she tried to cry out again, but she couldn't hold her head up. Vaguely she heard her name being called by Bobby, but she couldn't fight the current. Slowly she sunk down; wiggling in desperation, but it was in vain. Riley screamed, choking on the water and she began to lose consciousness. _

_"Riley!? Riley!" _

Riley jerked awake, sitting up in a shock and her face was ashen and sweaty. She looked over at Dean and Sam to see if she had woken them, but they were still sleeping away peacefully. Dean was sprawled out and so was Sam, making it seem like either one would be hitting the floor soon. She sighed. They really shouldn't have to sleep like that. Riley wondered if she should start getting her own room. Riley glanced at the clock. It was four in the morning. She groaned. There was no way she was going to get sleep now. With a sigh, Riley slid out of the bed and headed for the bathroom, picking up her duffel bag along the way.

* * *

"Sam, relax. She went for a jog." Dean muttered, propping his feet up on the small table. Sam shot him a look. The door to the motel began to open and Dean smirked. "And there she is." Riley was illuminated by the early morning light, already dressed for the day and with her hands full.

"What were you doing up so early?" Sam demanded as soon as the girl came inside. She set down the coffee and something in a bag. Dean curiously took hold of the bag and pulled it over to him. She smirked and took it back reaching inside to hand him something in a cardboard box.

"Enjoy." She stated and he opened the box.

"Pie!" Dean announced and dug in immediately. Riley giggled and Sam hummed.

"I couldn't sleep anymore, so I went for a jog." She told him and Sam frowned in concern, but she waved it off. "It's okay, Sam. Really." She assured him before wiping her forehead. "But…I just found out that Will Carlton's dead." Dean paused from his pie and looked up at her. "So I think we can rule out Nessie."

"What do you mean?" Dean asked with a mouthful of apple pie. Sam looked at her.

"He drowned, but not in the lake." Now they looked confused. "In his sink." Sam's eyes widened and Dean shoveled in another forkful of pie.

"Wow." He spoke, sending crumbs of pie crust across the table at Sam who rolled his eyes, finishing his pie slice with better manners. "So you were right Sam, this isn't a creature; we're dealing with something else."

"Yeah but what?

"I don't know. Water wraith maybe? Some kind of demon? I mean, it's got to be something that controls water."

"Water that comes from the same source." Riley commented.

"The lake." Sam murmured and Dean nodded.

"Yeah."

"Which would explain why it's upping the body count/ The Lake is draining, which means that it will be dry in a few months." Sam added.

"Well, whatever it is, it's running out of time to get whatever it wants." Riley murmured, shivering slightly.

"And if it can get through the pipes, it can get to anyone, anywhere." Dean glanced at Riley who had been reading to take a quick shower. She caught his eye, but he reassured her that she would be okay to take a quick one. "This is gonna happen again, soon."

"And we know one other thing for sure," Sam said. "We know that this has got something to do with Bill Carlton."

"Yeah, it took both of his kids." Dean agreed.

"And I've been asking around." Riley spoke up. "Lucas' dad Chris? He was Bill Carlton's godson." Dean stood up and grabbed his coffee.

"Let's go pay Bill Carlton a visit." He said determinedly and then he glanced at Riley. "Pie was great by the way and the coffee wasn't so bad either. How did you remember I liked pie?"

"You used to steal every pie I made when you guys would come over remember?" Riley laughed. "I had to hide them." Sam snorted.

"I remember the one you hid under the couch cushion." Dean smiled.

"Oh, yeah…"

"The one you sat on." Riley stated and walked into the bathroom. Sam laughed, glancing at Dean who was narrowing his eyes.

"It was still a good pie!" He shouted after her and she giggled as she shut the door.

* * *

They found Bill Carlton sitting on the bench at the dock again when they walked over. He was looking forlornly out at the water and Riley wanted to hug him.

"Mr. Carlton?" She asked, walking up to him and announcing their presence. Mr. Carlton looked up at them slowly. Riley lost her nerve at the lost look in his eyes and Sam stepped forward.

"We'd like to ask you a few questions, if you don't mind." He stated politely.

Dean nodded and came up beside him, keeping a steadying hand on Riley's back when she backed away from the edge, which wasn't anywhere near where she was standing. "We're from the, the Department-"

"I don't care who you're with." Carlton interrupted, sounding defeated and bitter. "I've answered enough questions today."

"Your son said he saw something in that lake." Sam began anyway. "What about you? You ever see anything out there?" Bill remained silent and Sam pressed on. "Mr. Carlton. Sophie's drowning and Will's death – we think there might be a connection to you or your family-"

"My children are gone." Bill said, his voice heavy and shaky with emotion. "It's... it's worse than dying." He looked up at them, agony and tears in his eyes. He looked back at the lake with a small sniff. "Go away. Please."

They did what he asked walking back off the dock and stepped onto the solid ground again.

"So what do you think?" Riley asked, as they walked to the Impala.

"Ah, I think the poor guy's been through hell." Dean answered and then stopped at the driver's side door to glance at Sam and Riley. "I also think he's not telling us something." He looked over his shoulder at the Carlton's house and frowned.

"What is it?" Riley asked when he stiffened.

"Huh," He said and reached into his pocket and pulled out the picture Lucas had given him yesterday. "Maybe Bill's not the only one who knows something." He held up the drawing and compared it to the house.

"Lucas." Riley breathed and Dean nodded.

"That kid knows something." Riley handed Dean the drawing he gave her. "Think there is something with this one too?"

"We'll see." Dean nodded and tucked the drawing into his jacket pocket, with his own.

* * *

"I'm sorry, but I don't think it's a good idea," Andrea was saying as the three of them entered her home. She had been surprised to see them there and a little worried about the reason for their visit.

"I just need to talk to him," Dean said to her gently and reassuringly, using that Winchester charm. "Just for a few minutes."

"He won't say anything. What good's it gonna do?" Andrea asked, shrugging her shoulders with a frown.

"Andrea," Sam began. "We think more people might get hurt. We think something's happening out there." Andrea shook her head.

"My husband, the others, they just drowned. That's all," She said stubbornly and shakily.

"If that's what you really believe, then we'll go." Dean told her. "But if you think there's even a _possibility _that something else could be going on here, please let me talk to your son." Andrea relented, seeing that he was being genuine.

Lucas was in his bedroom floor coloring. Plastic Army men and several papers and crayons were scattered around him in his little circle. Sam, Andrea and Riley waited at the doorway while Dean went in and crouched down in front of the little boy. As the usual, Lucas didn't even acknowledge that Dean was there, he just continued to draw.

"Hey Lucas," Dean began. "You remember me?" Lucas didn't move his make a move to show he knew Dean was around. "You know, I uh, I wanted to thank you for that last drawing. But the thing is, I need your help again." He took out his drawing and set it on the floor in front of the little boy.

"How did you know to draw this?" Dean asked gently. "Did you know something bad was gonna happen? Maybe you could nod yes or no for me." Lucas kept on coloring and Dean watched him for a moment.

"You're scared. It's okay. I understand." Dean said smiling grimly. "See, when I was your age, I saw something real bad happen to my mom, and I was scared too. I didn't feel like talking, just like you. But see, my mom – I know she wanted me to be brave. I think about that every day. And I do my best to be brave. And maybe, your dad wants you to be brave too."

Lucas paused, dropping his crayon and then looked slowly up at him. He reached out, picking up one of the pictures he'd drawn and handed it to me. It was of a white church with a yellow building next to it and a boy in a blue baseball cap holding a red bicycle stood outside a wooden fence.

"Thanks Lucas," Dean said softly and Lucas just looked at him. Dean looked at Sam who nodded and turned from the bedroom door. Andrea and Riley followed him. Before Dean could get all the way up, Lucas grabbed his arm and handed him something.

"What's this?" He opened it and nodded. "Thanks. Riley will be looking for this. She likes her angel picture." Lucas took the drawing calmly and turned it upside down. "Hey. Now it looks like she's…" Dean looked back at Lucas who had gone back to drawing and Dean swallowed.

"Dean, are you coming?" Riley called and Dean nodded at the little boy in the floor.

"Thanks for the warning."

* * *

"Andrea said the kid never drew like that till his dad died." Dean informed them as he drove.

"There are cases – going through a traumatic experience could make people more sensitive to premonitions, psychic tendencies..." Sam rattled off.

"Whatever's out there, what if Lucas is tapping into it somehow?" Sam began to shake his head, but Dean pressed on.

"I mean, it's only a matter of time before somebody else drowns, so if you got a better lead please…." He looked over at Sam who threw his hands up and shook his head.

"So we gotta another house to find." Riley stated and Dean nodded.

"The only problem is, there's about a thousand yellow two-stories in this county alone," Dean complained.

"Yes, but there's probably not that many churches like these around." Riley pointed out and Sam nodded.

"True." He stated. "Probably less than a thousand of them."

"Oh, collage boy. Thinks he's _so_ _smart_." Dean mocked playfully.

"Don't make fun." Riley said, hitting his arm and Dean snickered. Sam laughed.

"You know um…What you said about Mom…." Sam began and Dean kept his eyes trained on the road. "You never told me that before."

"It's not a big deal," Dean dismissed and Sam stared at him with a small smile.

Dean looked over and groaned. "Oh God, we're not gonna have to hug or anything, are we?" He said and Riley giggled.

"Yes, because we love you so much." Riley teased and wrapped her arms around his neck. Sam snickered. Dean looked at her in the rearview mirror, eyes darkened.

"I know something better than hugging if that's what you want." She let go of his shoulders and narrowed her eyes at him. _Two can play at that game. _

"Let's find the house first, and then we'll talk." She said smoothly, running her fingers down his chest. Dean choked and she winked at Sam who started shaking his head.

* * *

Dean parked near the church that seemed to match the one on the drawing and they got out of the car. It didn't take them long to find the little yellow house, that Lucas had drawn, across the street from the church. Sam led the way as they walked across to the sidewalk with Riley wondering along behind them.

"We'll, we're sorry to bother you, ma'am." Dean apologized. "But does a little boy live here, by any chance?"

"One with a blue baseball cap and a little red bike?" Riley questioned. The old woman looked a little upset.

"No." She told Riley. "Not for a very long time. Peter's been gone thirty-five years now. The police never…I never had any idea what happened. He just disappeared. Losing him…. it just…You know…It's-it's worse than dying."

"We're so sorry for your loss, Mrs. Sweeney." Riley murmured and the old woman smiled at her.

"Thank you, dear."

"Did he disappear from here? I mean from this house?" Dean asked and the woman shook her head.

"He was supposed to ride his bike straight home from school, and he never showed up." She sniffed and Riley handed her a tissue. Dean went over to a mirror on the wall that had an old picture on it and he lifted it up.

""Peter Sweeney and Billy Carlton, 1970"." He read and Riley turned to the old woman.

"Thank you for your time, Mrs. Sweeney." She said politely and the woman nodded. As they headed for the door, Mrs. Sweeney took hold of Riley's wrist.

"You and you're husband be careful." She warned her, looking between Riley and Dean. Riley's cheeks were a dark red and she stuttered to speak.

"Oh, um, we-we we're not-"

"But when you do have children," Mrs. Sweeney went on. "Don't ever let them out of your sight, even for a moment."

"Yes, we'll take good care of them." Dean spoke up and took Riley by the elbow. "Thank you again, for your time." He led Riley out the door and once they were out of hearing range, Sam burst into laughter.

"She thought you two were married!?" He chuckled and Dean and Riley rolled their eyes at him.

"Shut up, Sam!" They said at the same time and Sam snickered again.

* * *

"Okay, this little kid, Peter Sweeney, vanishes and this is all connected to Bill Carlton somehow," Sam concluded as they drove down the road back to Bill Carlton's.

"Yeah. Bill sure as hell seems to be hiding somethin', huh?" Dean stated and Riley leaned forward between him and Sam.

"And Bill, the people he loves, they're all getting punished," She pointed out with a frown. "Something must have happened between Bill and Peter as kids."

Dean nodded. "Riles, you might be onto something. So, what if Bill did something to Peter?"

"What if Bill killed him?" Sam murmured.

Dean nodded. "Peter's spirit would be furious. It'd want revenge. It's possible." They arrived at the Carlton's and Sam called out for the man.

"Mr. Carlton!" Riley yelled and suddenly heard a motor running. She turned towards the lake. "Look!" She said and the boys turned to her. Bill was in a boat heading out to the middle of the lake.

"Mr. Carlton!" Dean called as they ran down towards the dock. Riley swallowed her fear long enough to run to the end of the pier with them. They all shouted at Bill, but he didn't turn his boat around. All the suddenly, the boat was knocked up into the air and flipped over, taking Bill down with it. Riley gasped and covered her mouth stepping back.

"Oh, no…."

"We've got to get to the sheriff's office." Sam stated and they headed back to the car. Sam noticed that Riley was looking sickly. "Riley, you all right? You look a little pale."

"I'm-I'm fine." She reassured him. "That was just…"

"Yeah, I know, but we're going to solve this okay?" She nodded and he smiled at her reassuringly.

* * *

When they entered the police station, Andrea called to them in surprise.

"Sam, Dean, Riley…I didn't expect to see you here."

"So now you're on a first name basis?" Sheriff Devins asked, opening the door into the office space and glancing at the trio behind him. He glanced at his daughter. "What are you doing here?"

"I brought you dinner," She replied.

"Oh, I'm sorry sweetheart; I don't really have the time," Devins said apologetically shrugging off his jacket. Andrea gave him a sad look. Riley saw that Lucas was rocking back and forth in his seat and she nudged Dean. He looked over at the little boy too and frowned slightly.

"I heard about Bill Carlton," Andrea said quietly to her father. "Is it true? Is something going on with the lake?"

"Right now we don't know what the truth is," Devins responded. "But I think it might be better if you and Lucas went on home." Lucas suddenly looked frightened and he stood up quickly whimpering and he gripped Dean's arm.

"Lucas, hey, what is it?" Dean asked, but Lucas continued to cling to him, tugging on his arm for dear life. Andrea tried to pull him away as Dean tried to calm him down. "Lucas, Lucas. It's okay, it's okay," He reassured the boy gently. Lucas took Riley's hand and met her eyes and Dean glanced at her. She nodded slowly.

"Okay, Lucas." Riley stated and squeezed his hand. The boy let his mother pull him away and guide him to the door. The whimpering had stopped, but he continued to look at them as he left.

Sheriff Devins watched them leave, before stalking into his office.

"I think something bad is going to happen, Dean." Riley whispered watching Lucas as his mother led him down the steps of the police station. The boy's eyes were still trained on them. "And Lucas knows it. He wants us to know it." Dean didn't answer, but he was starting to think about what she was saying.

* * *

The sheriff took a seat at his desk and waited almost impatiently for them to sit. "Okay, just so I'm clear," He began and Riley didn't like the way that he was looking at them. "You three see, something, attack Bill's boat. Sending Bill, who is a very good swimmer by the way, into the drink, and you all never saw him again?" He looked unconvinced and half angry that they would be telling this made up story.

"Yeah. That about sums it up," Dean said with a nod of his head. Devins stared at them in disbelief.

"And I'm supposed to believe this, even though I've already sonar-swept that entire lake and what you're describing is impossible." He looked at each of them. "And none of you are really wildlife service." Devins eyed Riley. "Just very informative." She shifted under his gaze and Sam patted her hand.

Devins saw this and smirked. "That's right. I checked. The Department's never heard of you three."

"See, now-Now we can explain that," Dean began, but he really didn't have a liable excuse.

"Enough," Devins said angrily and Dean shut up. "Please. The only reason any of you are breathing free air is because a neighbor of Bill's saw him steering out that boat just before you did." He gave each of them a warning look before he continued. "So we have a couple of options here. I can arrest you for impersonating government officials and hold you all as material witnesses in the Carlton disappearance or we can chalk this up to a bad day. You get in your car, you put this town in your rearview, and you don't ever darken my doorstep again," he said pointing his finger at Sam and pointedly ignoring Dean.

"Door number two sounds good," Sam shifted and replied in a low voice.

"That's the one I'd pick." Devins said threateningly and Riley bit her lip.

* * *

"Green." Sam toned and Dean blinked.

"What?"

"The light's green."

"Good let's go back." Riley stated and Sam looked at her. She looked worried. Dean started forward, but he didn't turn the right direction.

"Uh, the interstate's the other way." Sam began and Riley leaned forward.

"Sam, we can't leave."

"But, Riley, I think this job is really over."

"I'm not so sure either." Dean muttered.

"If Bill murdered Peter Sweeny, and Peter's spirit got it's revenge, case closed. The spirit should be at rest."

"You saw, Lucas, Sam. He was so distraught. Something's wrong." Riley said sincerely.

"Yeah, I think Riles is right on this one too." Dean agreed. "What if we take off and this thing isn't done? You know? What if we've missed something? What if more people get hurt?"

"But why would you think that?" Sam asked, bewildered.

"Because Lucas was really scared."

"That's what this is about? That's what's got you two worked up?"

"Lucas needed to let us know something, Sam." Riley murmured.

"And just don't wanna leave this town till I know that kids okay." Dean added.

"Who are you?" Sam teased. "And what have you done with my brother?" Riley giggled.

"Shut up." Dean stated, rolling his eyes.

* * *

"Are you sure about this? It's pretty late." Sam asked for the hundredth time and Riley nodded.

"Yes." She said and Dean nodded too before he pushed the doorbell. Riley squealed when the door burst open and then she grew concerned. Lucas was panting and scared, looking at them with wide eyes.

"Lucas? Lucas?" Dean asked, reaching for the boy. Lucas took off away from his hands, leading them to the stairs. Water was gushing down the steps and out from under the bathroom door. Lucas pounded on the door for a second before Sam pulled him out of the way and giving him to Riley as Dean kicked the door in. Lucas clung to Riley, his hands, fisting in her shirt and she shushed and cooed at him.

Sam ran in towards the tub that had foul looking brown water in it and they all could tell that Andrea was thrashing under the water. Sam knelt by the tub, his arms going in to grab her. He tugged and groaned, but the spirit was refusing to let go. Dean ran in and helped him tug, groping in the water for the plug. He jerked it up, but the water didn't go down at all. Dean helped Sam get a good grip and together they finally hauled Andrea up from the tub.

Riley let go of Lucas and he rushed forward to clutch at his mother who was gasping for air and sobbing as she rocked her son back and forth. Riley grabbed a bathrobe from the door and handed it to Andrea.

"Thank you," She said quietly.

* * *

A little later, Riley was mopping up what was left of the water while Sam set Andrea down at the kitchen table to talk. Dean was somewhere, checking something out.

"Can you tell me?" Sam asked Andrea.

"No. It doesn't make any sense," She said after a moment and started to sob. "I'm going crazy..." She covered her face with her hands. Riley came in and sat next to her.

"No, you're not," She said gently. "Trust us."

"Tell me what happened. Everything." Sam murmured.

"I-I thought I heard... There was this voice..." Andrea said slowly.

"What did it say?" Riley asked, trying not to let her nerves show. She went to stand at the window, the rising sun shining on her face as she gazed at the water.

"It said-It said, 'Come play with me'," Andrea whispered and Riley stiffened. "What's happening?" Andrea began to sob again. Dean came in and Riley jumped as he set a book on the table.

Dean walked into the room carrying an old photo album which he put on the coffee table in front of Andrea. "Do you recognize any of the kids in these pictures?" Dean asked, getting straight to the point without a warning. Riley smacked his arm for scaring her and he rolled his eyes.

"What?" Andrea stated before glancing at the photos. "Oh. No. I mean, except that's my dad right there." She pointed at a picture and Riley walked over to peer over Dean's shoulder. He must have been about twelve in these pictures."

"That little boy. That's Peter Sweeny." Riley pointed out and Dean nodded.

"Chris Barr's drowning, the connection wasn't to Bill Carlton it was the sheriff."

"Bill _and_ the sheriff." Sam agreed. "They were both involved with Peter."

"What about Chris?" Andrea asked startled. Riley looked over to see Lucas appear at her side, gazing out the window. "My...my Dad? What are you talking about?"

"Lucas?" Riley asked and Dean looked over. "What's wrong?" Riley went closer, but suddenly Lucas was opening the door and going outside. Riley looked at Dean worried and he looked just as worried. They all followed Lucas as he walked towards the woods near the lake and no one spoke up for a moment.

"Lucas? Honey?" Andrea murmured, but her son was still walking ahead of them. Suddenly he paused and looked down at a spot on the ground. Riley couldn't see anything, but she was sure that he knew something was there under the moss and dirt. Dean knew this too and looked at Andrea.

"You and Lucas get back into the house and stay there okay?" Dean said. She looked conflicted but didn't argue with him and taking Lucas by the arm, pulled him away.

Sam and Dean took the shovels out of the back of the Impala and not one of them offered to let Riley do it. Even Dean with his usual complaints didn't ask her to dig. So she felt useless watching the men do the work and began to become restless. Much to Dean's amusement she began to hum _Welcome to the Jungle_ under her breath. Suddenly the clank of metal resounded and Dean pulled his shovel up. Riley got down with them for this one and they began to clear away the dirt. Riley grasped something hard and she looked at Dean. He pushed her hands aside and with Sam they pulled up a bicycle.

Riley gasped. "It's Peter's bike." She stated, still kneeling on the ground. A gun cocked behind her and she turned her head slowly.

"Who are you?" Devins asked with a dangerous tone. Riley put her hands up slowly, the gun was pointed at her head.

"Put the gun down Jake," Sam said, trying to remain calm.

"How did you know that was there?" Devins asked, his hand was shaking and he held the gun. Riley felt Dean take her arm and he slowly brought her up beside him. She was glad that he didn't let go. Although she had been held at gunpoint before, it was a hunter's risk; there was still the fear of being shot by someone with a shaky hand.

"What happened?" Dean asked. "You and Bill killed Peter? Drowned him in the lake and then buried the bike? You can't bury the truth, Jake. Nothing stays buried."

"I don't know what the Hell you're talking about," Devins said calmly, but his hand was still shaking.

Dean glared at him. "You and Bill killed Peter Sweeney thirty-five years ago. That's what the Hell I'm talking about."

"Dad!" Andrea called and she ran up near them.

"And now you have one seriously pissed off spirit," Dean finished.

"It's gonna take Andrea," Sam said, drawing attention to him. "Lucas...and everyone you love. It's gonna drown them and it's gonna drag their bodies God knows where, so that you can feel the same pain Peter's mom felt. And then after that, it's gonna take you. And it's not gonna stop until it does." He was watching Devins, eyes carefully trained on him.

"Yeah? And how do you know that?" Devins asked, glaring at him.

"Because that's exactly what it did to Bill Carlton," Riley answered slowly.

"Listen to yourselves." Devins scoffed. "All of you are insane!"

"I don't really give a rat's ass what you think of us, but if we're gonna bring down this spirit, we need to find the remains, salt them and burn them to dust." Dean snapped. "Now please tell me you buried Peter somewhere? That you didn't just let his body go into the lake?"

"Dad, is any of this true?" Andrea asked quietly.

"No, don't listen to them. They are liars and they're dangerous," Devins said with a frown and Riley looked at Andrea who was shaking her head at her father.

"Something tried to drown me. Chris died in that lake! Dad, look at me!" She said strongly and finally he faced her. "Please tell me you didn't kill anyone." Her father looked away, guilt in his eyes. "Oh my God!"

"Billy and I were at the lake. Peter was the smallest and we always bullied him," Devins said quietly, pausing as he relived the memories. "This time…it got rough. We were holding his head under water. We didn't mean to. But we held him under too long and he drowned." Riley swallowed and Dean maneuvered her closer to him.

"We let the body go. And it sank," Devins continued before pleading to his daughter. "Oh, Andrea. We were kids. We were so scared. I-it was a mistake. But, Andrea, to say that I had anything to do with these drownings, with Chris. Because of some ghost? It's just not rational."

"All right, listen to me, all of you," Dean said suddenly, getting everyone's attention. "We have to get you as far away from this lake as we can. Right now." Andrea gave a gasp and everyone turned to see Lucas kneeling on the dock by the water.

"Lucas!" Devins yelled and everyone started running for the dock, the rest of them following behind him. Lucas suddenly fell headfirst into the water. Dean tossed off his jacket and he ran down the dock, diving in and Sam wasn't far behind. Riley stood on the dock, looking fearful and lost.

"Andrea, stay there with Riley!" Sam called to Lucas' mother and he dove back under the water.

"No, Lucas!"

"They'll find him." Riley said shakily to Andrea. "We have to stay out of the water."

Dean came up for air. "Sam?" Sam shook his head and Andrea went to her knees on the dock.

"Lucas, where are you?" Riley felt bad for not being able to get in the water and she held her arms, pacing the deck. Something splashed near the dock and Riley thought she saw a small hand.

"Lucas?" She moved closer and leaned over the edge, trying to swallow her fear. Riley with a soundless screamed when the hand closed around her wrist and she was tugged headfirst into the water without too much splash. There were bubbles everywhere and Riley began to panic and thrash.

"Come play with me." A voice said Riley saw the spirit of Peter. She was afraid at first, but an eerie calmness and acceptance surrounded her like a security blanket and she closed her eyes. Her body began to sink.

Andrea was searching the water, watching Dean and Sam bobble up now and then when a splashing caught her attention and she turned.

"Peter, if you can hear me." Sheriff Devins began and he wadded in the water, getting deeper and deeper. "Please, Peter, I'm sorry."

"Daddy, no!"

"I'm-I'm so sorry!" Devins sobbed. "Peter. Lucas, he's-he's just a little boy! Please it's not his fault, its mine, take me." Suddenly he began to go down like he was being tugged and Andrea screamed.

"Daddy! Daddy! No!" Andrea began to cry and Sam came back up. He shook his head at her. Her father was gone. Andrea sobbed and screamed in agony, hoping her son wasn't dead too. Dean broke the surface with Lucas seconds later. Andrea looked over her shoulder to see of the blond girl was still there and she gasped.

"Oh my, God!"

"What? What is it?" Sam said about to pull himself up out of the water.

"She's gone." Sam immediately knew who she meant and cursed.

"No, no, no! Dean!" Sam called and swam back out.

"What are you doing?! I got him!" Dean yelled when he saw Sam swimming back towards him.

"Riley! She's been pulled under!"

"It should have let go! Why hasn't it let go of her!" Dean handed Lucas to Sam. "Damn it." He went back under the water. It hit him then. Lucas had known that Riley would be dragged down. He came back up for air.

Sam patted Lucas' back as more water spewed from his lungs. Andrea hugged her son and Sam turned at the sound of someone coming up for air.

"You see her?" Sam called and Dean shook his head quickly, diving back down. "Stay here." He told Andrea. "I'm going to help him." Sam dove back in.

Dean swam near the bottom and suddenly spotted her. Just like in Lucas' drawing, she was floating there, her arms wide and hair floating like an angel's halo. Dean swam over to her at the same time that Sam did. Sam took hold of her and headed for the surface. Dean was about to follow when he spotted something small and shiny sinking quickly in the water.

Sam broke the surface and Riley coughed up water, clinging to him as she started to sob. He swam them over to the dock and pushed Riley up on the dock before heaving himself up after her, breathing heavily. She was pale and shaky, sobbing softly and he hugged her to him.

"It's okay. You're okay." He promised, rocking her gently. She clung to him as Dean came up out of the water sluggishly, exhausted and he lay out on his back on the sopping wet pier. Riley was starting to calm down a little and she began to sniff quietly as Sam stroked her hair.

"Are you all right?" She nodded before stiffening. Her hand went to her neck and she gasped, sitting up and gazing at the water.

"No…" She whispered.

"What's wrong?"

"It's gone!" She said quietly and Dean saw the rising panic. He cleared his throat to get her attention and held his hand out.

"Missing something, Blondie?" She saw the necklace sitting in his hand and she gave him the world's biggest smile. Dean suddenly didn't feel so cold anymore.

"You…you found it! Oh, Dean, thank you!" Without much forewarning, she went forward and kissed him hard on the lips. Sam's eyebrows rose up under his hair. Dean wanted nothing more than to thread his fingers through her golden hair and keep her full pink lips pressed against him, but she pulled back away from, far too soon in his opinion, and gave him another smile. "Thank you so much." He only nodded and she sat back, letting Sam tuck his coat around her shoulders.

* * *

_Back at the motel room_

"What the hell?" Dean snapped at her when they got in the door. "What? You just decided to fall in?" He wasn't truly angry with her, more angry at himself for not remembering Lucas' drawing, but his temper needed someone to blame.

"No!" Riley snapped back, looking ready to either burst into tears or tear his head off. Why was he accusing her like that? Did he think she did it on purpose?

"God, I knew you were reckless, but falling in the damn lake when we have other people to worry about-" Other people? God he was such an ass!

"You know what?!" Riley shouted at him over him rant and Dean glowered at her for being interrupted. "From now on, I'll just sit back and let you do everything. I won't lift a God damn finger to help you! And you can just drop me off somewhere else!"

"Like you were so much help floating at the bottom of the lake!" Dean growled and she shoved him out of the way, going into the bathroom and slamming the door shut. The shower turned on and Sam looked up from the table.

"Dean, what the hell? She almost died today." He frowned and Dean nodded, chucking down a beer.

"Yeah, exactly. For someone scared of water, she sure doesn't know how to stay out of it."

"You could be a little more sympathetic. She was scared."

"She shouldn't have been near the edge."

"What is your problem?"

"Lucas saw her drown." Dean tossed the drawing at him and Sam gave him a confused look. "Turn it upside down." Sam's eyebrows rose.

"Oh…" He could see it now; it showed her floating under the water.

"You see? And there she goes, diving headfirst."

"You don't know that's what happened." Sam reasoned. "She could have fallen in or something."

"Yeah, right." Dean scoffed. Riley came out of the shower, her hair covering her face from view, and went over to the bed.

"Riley, you want some of this pizza?" Sam offered and the blond shook her head.

"No, thank you." She toned softly. "I'm just going to bed now." Sam nodded and glanced at Dean who shrugged carelessly. Sam made a face and shook his head.

"What?" Dean demanded with a mouthful of cheese and pepperoni. Sam just sighed. Riley kept her back to the brothers, tears glistening in her eyes.

* * *

The next afternoon, they were packing their bags to head back out on the road. Dean had remained rather quiet, he never liked losing lives and it took a toll on him and also the fact that he was ignoring Riley. Riley herself was rather quiet too. Sam looked at his brother.

"Look, we're not gonna save everybody."

"I know." Dean replied with a nod. Riley shifted beside him, her eyes fixed on the ground.

"Sam, Dean, Riley." They looked over at the sound of Andrea's voice and Dean looked a little happier.

"Hey." He greeted and Sam and Riley smiled.

"Hey. We're glad we caught you." Andrea greeted and smiled at Dean nervously. "We just, um…We made you lunch for the road. Lucas insisted on making the sandwiches himself."

"Aww that's so sweet. Thank you, Lucas." The boy smiled shyly at Riley's praise.

"Can I give it to them now?" He asked his mother and she nodded.

"Of course."

Dean tucked the boy under his arm. "Come on, Lucas, let's load this in the car."

"How are you holding up?" Sam asked Andrea politely.

"It's just going to take a long time to sort through everything you know." Riley nodded.

"Andrea, I'm sorry." Sam said quietly.

"You saved my son." She murmured and then added when Riley gave her a shake of her head. "All of you. I can't ask for more than that. Dad loved me. He loved Lucas. No matter what he did, I just have to hold on to that."

"All right," Dean began when they started to walk over to them. "If you're gonna be talking now, this is a very important phrase, so I want you to repeat it one more time," Lucas smiled.

"Zeppelin rules!" Lucas cried and Dean laughed. Riley giggled.

"That's right. Up high!" Dean held his hand up and Lucas slapped his palm against Dean's. "You take care of your mom, okay?" Lucas nodded and Andrea came closer to Dean. She kissed Dean on the lips and Riley smirked at his surprised expression. A bit of jealously rose up in her stomach, but she pushed it aside. What was there to be jealous of? She could never be with someone like Dean. She wasn't good enough and it was clear enough that he didn't think she was anyone at all.

"Thank you." Andrea said when she pulled back from him. Dean grinned and then rubbed the back of his neck, uncomfortable.

"Sam, Riley, move your asses. We're gonna run out of daylight before we hit the road." He said and went around to the front of the car. Sam waved at Riley to sit up front and her eyes widened.

"Um…."

"I need some more sleep." Sam told her and he did look tired. Riley nodded and climbed in, ignoring Dean who was starting the car.

"Bye." Riley waved and Lucas waved at her with a smile. They sped away from the parking lot and Riley watched them in the side rearview mirror. When they were gone from sight, Sam reached up and touched her shoulder. She yelped and Dean snickered, making her eye him crossly.

"Sorry." Sam apologized and she turned to Sam, ignoring Dean's snickering.

"It's okay. I really shouldn't be so jumpy." She said quietly and Sam frowned.

"Riley…"

"It's not that big a deal, Blondie." Dean stated, staring at the road. "So quit acting like it."

"Well, it was a big deal to me, okay?" Riley snapped and Dean glared at her. "And I wasn't even talking to you."

Sam sighed and moved forward in the seat. "What happened exactly?" Riley looked at him. "You never said last night."

"I-I thought I saw Lucas when Devins went in the water. So I went over to the side of the dock and looked in. Peter grabbed my wrist." Sam frowned and Dean glanced over at her.

"He grabbed you on purpose." Sam muttered and Riley nodded.

"Yep."

"So, you didn't just fall in?" Dean murmured and Riley held her arms protectively.

"Nope." Sam patted her shoulder and sent his brother a look. Dean only rolled his eyes.

* * *

_Later that night…_

"I owe you an explanation." Riley began nervously, wringing her hands. Dean looked at her from the road. He didn't say anything and she bit her lip looking out the window before sighing and glancing at her lap. "About the…rings. I know you saw them." She continued and started braiding and unbraiding her hair mostly to hide her face with her arms from Dean.

"Mmhm." Dean hummed, his eyes glued to the road now.

"I also want to thank you…again…For what you did and…and I'm getting off subject." She ended and Dean smirked. Riley touched the rings that sat on her neck and Dean looked at her again.

"You avoid everything that has to do with the night I picked you up. Does that have anything to do with it?"

"Some…" She said softly. Dean nodded once.

"Okay then." He waited a moment to see if she'd start talking. "Is it that bad, Blondie?"

"I-I…." She held on to her necklace and bit into her lower lip. This caused Dean to stare at her mouth, those full pink lips that had once pressed against his in a cushiony, pliable heat. True it had only last brief two or three seconds and had been given because she was so happy, but it still made an impact on him. He had to look away now.

"Riley?" He prompted, trying to distract himself. She shut her eyes and took a shuddering breath. Dean reached over and cupped her chin, turning her face towards him. He needn't worry about watching the road. They were on a stretch asphalt that seemed to go on for miles and there were hardly anyone on it. In fact they hadn't passed a car in almost two hours.

"Take it easy." He told her and her eyes opened. She looked vulnerable and afraid, her wide blue eyes gazing at him, wanting to trust. "Tell me what happened." He murmured, stroking her lower lip with his thumb on impulse. Her breath caught and she stilled. For a moment they were elsewhere and not in the Impala with a sleeping Sam in the back. A soft snore came from the back however and they both jumped. She pulled away, cheeks a dark pink, and he reluctantly let go of her chin.

"The diamond ring is mine." She said quietly. "But you already knew that." He nodded when she glanced at him. "I was engaged."

"Was." Dean said.

"Yes." She affirmed and then sighed. "I met Eli on a hunt with my dad and a few of his friends. A year ago. We didn't get along right away." She sighed. "We spent a lot of hunts together though and one night we just connected."

Dean smirked. "Ooh, details."

"Not like that!" Riley laughed and gave him a playful shove. Dean smiled. Her laughter was contagious. "I meant that we started falling in love."

"Quick or slow?"

"I'm going to hit you." She warned and he smirked.

"Just a question, Blondie."

"Anyway," She rolled her eyes with a smile. "The year passed and…he asked me to marry him." She started to tremble a bit and her breathing quickened. Dean frowned. He sensed something bad had happened.

"What happened to him, Riley?"

"We- we we're on our way home to tell, Daddy." Riley began, her voice quivering slightly. "Eli and I stopped a local hotel in Fayetteville, Arkansas. I was taking a shower when someone knocked on the door. I assumed that Eli had gone to get it. And then…."

_"Eli?" Riley called out, stepping from the bathroom, a towel around her hair. She padded around in the dark motel room in her pajamas, frowning slightly. "Eli? There was no answer and so she went over to the bed and switched on the light. The bed sheets hadn't been laid in or on, they were in the perfect condition as they had been when they first came in and sat down on it. There was no sign of Eli. _

_Riley heard a muffled shout from outside and ran to grab her gun from her durable duffel bag. Eli's was already open and she saw that his gun was already gone. She pulled hers out quickly and stepped out from the safety of her room tossing her towel back into the room. Her foot lowered into something warm and sticky and she looked down. Riley gasped and stepped back, leaving bloodied foot prints in the concrete as she danced back away from the blood puddle. _

_"Eli?!" She hissed. "Where are you?" She stepped gingerly around the puddle and made her way down past the other rooms. A door was open, and the inside was dark and foreboding. A shiver went down Riley's spine and she held her gun up higher. Something wasn't right. _

_Riley kicked the door, opening it the rest of the way and she stepped onto the threshold, turning on the lights. Blood was everywhere and in the middle of the room…Eli was lying in a pool of blood. Riley screamed and backed up, dropping her gun before she tried to control her sobs. She went over to him and flipped him onto his back, her fingers pressing into his neck for a pulse and she bit her lip when there was none to be found. _

_"No! Oh, God please!" She cradled his head. "Please, don't be gone!"_

_"Riley!" She looked up to see Roy, one of Bobby's hunter friends, standing in the doorway. He looked winded and there was blood on his shirt. "What the hell are you doing here girl?" He reprimanded before his eyes found Eli. "Good God…"_

_"Help me, please!"_

"It was too late." Riley toned, curling into herself. "Roy never said what he was hunting no matter how much I begged him to tell me." She frowned now, glaring out the window. "He told me some stupid made up story about some bloodsucker. Vampires aren't real, are they?" She asked Dean and he frowned.

"Never seen one. So I'm saying no." She worried her lip and Dean glanced at her again. "You okay?"

"Yes." She stated, but Dean didn't believe her. He never spoke up, but he didn't press it either.

"Dean?" Riley said nervously, her voice wavering.

"Hm?"

"About what happened…at the lake." Dean tensed. She was about to tell him that she regretted kissing him. His whole body was rigid and he tried not to look at her. "I'm sorry-" She sobbed. Dean almost jumped at that and looked at her. "-you and Sam had to pull me out. I shouldn't have fallen in like that, but I….I thought I saw Lucas, so I got close to the edge and I'm sorry-"

"Blondie." Dean stated, placing a hand on her knee. "It's okay." His voice leaked relief that she hadn't flat out rejected him yet, but that still confused him as to why it bothered him. "It's okay. That thing would have tried to drown all of us."

"I know, but I should have known better…"

"You and…Well you haven't have been on the job for a while had you?"

"No, and I should have told you that too." She turned to him. "But I knew that you wouldn't have taken me with you." Dean remained silent. Riley sighed. "I'll understand if you want to drop me off somewhere. I wouldn't blame you. You don't need someone like me around." Dean frowned. Well this certainly explained how odd she had been acting, with her emotions all over the place and the depression, but he hadn't realized the extent of her guilt. What he wanted to say and what his "What Dad would have done" training, clashed. Half of him, the part not drilled by John wanted to stop the car and ask her what exactly she meant by not needing someone like her around, but the other half wanted to just do what she wanted. That half thought her a liability.

_She stuck up for you and caught your mistakes time and time again._

_So? And that's supposed to change anything? She freakin' lied._

_But she brought you pie. She freakin' remembered the pie!_

_Yeah…the pie…_

Dean shook his head. God, he needed some help before he winded up in an asylum.

"Hey." He said catching her attention. "We're in this together, Blondie." Dean tossed her a grin and Riley's heart leapt at 'together'. "Don't think you're getting out of it now." He teased and Riley had to smile and giggle at that. "Feel better?" She just nodded and wiped at her eyes. Dean remembered his hand was still on her knee, but she hadn't moved it yet.

Dean glanced at her and saw that she was starting to drift off to sleep. He slowly removed his hand, but she caught his wrist tugging herself closer to him and curling up in the seat. She laid her head on his arm, her fingers digging into his jacket. Dean looked at her in shock, but then relaxed when she let out a contented sigh in her sleep. She was asleep; she didn't know what she was doing right? At least that's what he convinced himself. He only wished that she hadn't lain on the arm that reached the radio. Almost like she had heard him, she leaned forward and turned up the knob a bit, letting the music flood the car.

"I've gotten used to hearing it." She told him and was about to move, when he snaked his arm around her shoulders and she stiffened.

"Go to sleep, Blondie." He murmured. She sighed and settled down, relaxing against him.

_Yeah, you've gone soft. _

_Shut up. _


End file.
